As the holiday season approaches, many people in the Fort Lauderdale area will be considering part-time work in order to earn extra money for the holidays. Many of those seasonal employees will take part-time, temporary jobs in the hospitality industry, in retail, and in food services. With more shoppers visiting Florida stores during the wintertime and an increase in overall tourists in the state, many of these places of seasonal employment are likely to be busy and hectic workplaces. When accidents happen, part-time and full-time seasonal workers can sustain serious injuries on the job. If you are only planning to work during the weeks of the holiday season, can you seek workers’ compensation benefits if you get hurt on the job?
Generally speaking, seasonal workers in Florida can be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if an injury arises in the course of the worker’s employment. Our experienced South Florida workers’ compensation lawyers can say more.
Are You a Seasonal Worker?
Are you a seasonal worker? As you consider a workers’ compensation claim for an injury that occurred during your holiday season work, you should work with an attorney to determine whether you are actually a seasonal worker. In Florida, seasonal workers typically work in a position for six months or fewer during the “season” for that job. Seasonal workers also typically begin work at the same time each year. People who work at a particular job only during the holiday season may be considered seasonal workers, but that fact alone does not prevent an injured worker from seeking workers’ compensation benefits.
Your Fort Lauderdale workers’ compensation lawyer can assess your case to determine whether you are in fact a seasonal worker and, if so, how that fact may affect your claim for compensation.
Seasonal Workers May Be Covered By Workers’ Compensation, But Worker Classification Will Be Important to Determine
Seasonal employees, like other employees at a workplace, can be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if the employer is required to have coverage and the employee meets other requirements under Florida workers’ compensation law. But the key term here is employee. Both part-time and full-time employees can be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits even if they are seasonal workers. However, seasonal workers who are independent contractors will not be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. Accordingly, an important aspect of determining your eligibility for benefits will be determining your worker classification status.
Do Not Let Your Employer Tell You That You Cannot Seek Benefits
Even if your employer is required to have workers’ compensation coverage and you are classified properly as an employee, your employee might try to tell you that seasonal workers cannot obtain workers’ compensation benefits. We want to emphasize that being a seasonal worker does not automatically prevent you from being eligible for workers’ compensation benefits.
If you are a seasonal employee and you get hurt at work, our workers’ compensation attorneys in Fort Lauderdale can help you with your claim.
Contact Our Fort Lauderdale Workers’ Compensation Lawyers
If you have questions about your eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits in Fort Lauderdale or elsewhere in South Florida, especially as the busy holiday season approaches, an experienced Fort Lauderdale workers’ compensation lawyer at our firm can help. Contact the Law Offices of David M. Benenfeld, P.A. to begin working on your claim.
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