In the past, most Ohioans worked nine to five office jobs - and spent the entire time in the office. This made workers' compensation claims much easier to approve or disapprove. While technology has made many tasks easier for companies, it has increased the complexity of many workers' compensation claims. Many employees now telecommute at least part of the time or spend their work time traveling or working onsite at other locations. When they become injured, determining whether they should receive workers' compensation benefits becomes complicated.
Nearly one-quarter of employees telecommute, which means that their work location is not fixed. Those who travel often for business also do not have a fixed work location. This increase in mobility brings about legal issues for the company, and could mean that these employees have, in some ways, a better chance of receiving workers' compensation benefits should they become injured.
Advances in technology - cellphones, VPN, Wi-Fi Internet, laptops and email - now allow workers to connect with their workplace 24/7. Workers' compensation claims have increased for many law firms due to this change in the traditional workplace, which means that insurance companies and employers will need to take this into consideration when forcing employees to stay connected to the office outside of working hours.
In the end, it all boils down to scope of employment and whether the injury occurred while the employee was performing work-related duties. The injury can happen at home, in a hotel room or even at a company picnic. The facts of each case are considered, with location now becoming a lesser factor.
Source: The Legal Intelligencer, "Modern Workplaces Add Complexity to Workers' Comp Cases," Lizzy McLellan, Oct. 24, 2014
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