Why Do Workers' Compensation Laws Exist?

Workers' comp is a form of insurance that provides compensation and medical care for workers who are injured on the job. This insurance is provided by the business in return for the promise not to sue the company for negligence. Workers' comp plans differ according to state. Provisions are usually made to compensate the injured worker with at least half of his or her weekly earnings for a period time until they return to work. They are also compensated for medical expenses.  Workers' comp sort of functions as health insurance in some instances. Workers' compensation benefits are payable to dependents and survivors of workers killed on the job as well. However, general damages for pain and suffering or punitive damages for employer negligence are usually not part of any workers' comp plans.

Workers' compensation laws were implemented after long and hard struggles by trade unions. Proponents of workers' comp say these types of laws improve working conditions while providing an economic safety net for employees. Critics, however, say these programs cost too much and should be ended in order to reduce government interference in business.

Before workers' comp, employees who were hurt on the job had only civil court or tort law under common law for recourse. Common Law was little more than a master servant view of the employer, employee relationship. Most courts usually sided with business with the worker left out in the cold and jobless. Under Common Law workers were forced to prove negligence or malice in order to win their case. This rarely happened.

Workers' compensation laws came into being in the early 1900s. However, they were still very slanted in favor of business and actually remained that way until the rise of the major trade unions, who used their ability to call massive strikes to force business to listen to them and address their various issues. Today it is illegal for any business to deny workers' comp to any employee. It is also illegal in most states for an employer to terminate or refuse to hire any worker for having had or reported a work place injury.

The New York injury attorneys of Worby Groner Edelman, LLP represent victims of premises liability, construction injuries, and medical negligence.