Increasingly, Nevadans are working more than one job. A second or even third job provides the necessary income in a difficult economic climate when the cost of groceries and other necessities has exploded.
Some workers cobble together multiple part-time jobs, hoping to pull together something approximating a full-time income. A small percentage of workers heroically work two full-time jobs—that’s roughly 80 hours a week.
If you have more than one job, then you might have questions about what happens if you are injured at one of them. Workers’ compensation pays for medical care and job loss benefits to those hurt on the job. But how much can you receive? Generally, having multiple jobs will increase the amount of disability benefits you might receive.
Call Ace Law Group today if you have questions. A workers’ compensation lawyer at our firm can walk you through what to expect and review your specific case.
Concurrent Employment and Workers’ Compensation
Nevada has regulations that apply to someone who works more than one job and is injured while working. NAC 616C.447 is the relevant provision.
It states that the worker’s wages from all employers will be added together and counted as the sum of wages earned at each employer. That helps enormously if you are so injured that you can’t work both jobs.
Imagine that you make $300 a week at one job and $250 at the other. Your total temporary disability benefits depend on your average monthly wage. If you were hurt at the second job, there’s a risk that your average monthly income will be only $1,000. By counting both jobs, your average monthly income is $2,200. That means that you can receive much compensation in terms of temporary total disability benefits, allowing you to continue to support yourself.
Temporary total disability benefits pay roughly 2/3 of your average wage. So by increasing the amount of income, you can increase the amount of benefits you take home.
You should report income from all jobs to the insurance carrier when you apply for workers’ compensation benefits. Remember to apply for benefits with the employer where you were hurt. But they might not know about your other jobs, so be sure to inform them of all income.
What if You Can Still Work One Job?
You might still be able to work one of your jobs even after the accident. For example, one job might require that you walk around, so breaking your leg means you can’t perform the job until your bone heals. However, the second job is a desk job, which you can work even if your leg is in a cast.
In this situation, your TTD benefits will probably only be based on the job you can’t work. That only makes sense. You are still earning income from your second job despite the injury.
If you don’t report that you are continuing to earn income at the second job, then you might be committing workers’ compensation fraud. That could result in criminal charges and other problems, so be sure to be honest with the insurer.
Does Your Second Employer Need to Keep a Job Open?
No. Only the employer at the job where you were hurt is responsible for paying benefits. They are also prohibited by law from retaliating against you for filing a workers’ compensation claim, which means they can’t demote you or fire you.
By contrast, your second employer is not legally obligated to protect you. The income from this job is included in calculating your total income for disability benefits. But this second employer is not responsible for paying benefits for an injury you sustained at a different job. They also don’t need to leave a job open for you. They could possibly even terminate you if you cannot get back to work. In short, they can treat the injury as a non-work-related injury and refuse to accommodate you.
Nonetheless, you can ask them to keep a job open or reduce the duties so you can get back to work. Open lines of communication with all your employers, especially if you don’t want to lose the job. They might be willing to keep a job open for you, even if they are not legally required to.
Problems with Concurrent Employment
Those who work multiple jobs can face many problems when it comes to applying for workers’ compensation benefits. Here are some common situations we see:
- The insurer does not count all income, lowering your benefits. Even if you report all income, they might fail to count it all.
- Employers disagree about where you were injured. One employer might point the finger at the other, which delays receiving workers’ compensation benefits because neither one wants to be responsible for paying.
- The employer paying benefits falsely accuses you of continuing to work at your second job and cuts off benefits.
Please call Ace Law Group if you encounter any problems getting benefits. We have enjoyed terrific success representing those injured on the job. We can review whether you qualify for workers’ compensation, including medical, temporary disability, and vocational benefits.
You might even bring a personal injury lawsuit against a non-employer for additional compensation. This is a good way to increase compensation since workers’ comp does not pay anything for pain and suffering.
We Can Help Anyone Injured on the Job
Nevada adopted the workers’ compensation system with the goal of simplifying the benefits process for injured workers. Sadly, many people still are unjustly denied benefits. You should reach out to our law firm to discuss your situation. Our firm is happy to answer a worker’s questions about their rights after an on-the-job accident.
We can check if you are getting all the benefits you are entitled to. Some insurers simply count only the income from one job. We know how to get all income counted, so you receive all the benefits afforded by law.
Call Ace Law Group today. Our firm can provide a free, no-risk consultation to those injured who need assistance.