Federal Workers Compensation Eligibility

Workers compensation eligibility may vary slightly from state to state based on the state workers’ compensation laws. But there are few federal employees’ compensation acts that are uniformly applicable in all states. Worker compensation was started way back in the 1940s in the US and now it is followed in all states and union territories. If workers get injured while working, they are compensated with federal benefits in order to support their physical and financial losses.

Workers Compensation Benefits and their Eligibility

Federal Employees Compensation act (FECA) is applicable to all US federal government employees, regardless of the length or position or nature of their duty. Such a federal government worker becomes eligible for FECA if he/she is injured while performing duty or due to the illness caused by working environmental conditions or work related activities.
Black Lung Benefits Act is for coal mine workers and the eligibility is that their pneumoconiosis should have resulted from exposure to coal mine dust.
Longshore and Harbor Workers’ compensation act is for compensating dependent survivors of injured employees working in long shore and harbors if their injury occurred in work environment or work-related jobs.
Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation program makes an energy employee eligible for its benefits if the employee has been disabled or injured while doing the job or due to harmful effects of nuclear weapons.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance is applicable to workers of any nature of job if they died or got injured while doing work related duties.

Additional Eligibility

Following are certain additional eligibility criteria to claim for compensation under various acts.

Injury caused while performing duties offsite. For employees on travel, injuries occurring all 24 hours including eating, bathing are all included until the travel is completed. But it may not include recreational outings or misconducts or intoxification cases during this travel.
Injury or death occurring due to accidents in places related to the off-site duties of the concerned employee.
Dependent of a federal government employee who died due to the injury caused at the work place.
You should not be receiving workmen’s compensation benefits for the same injury or death under any other law of the state or the nation.

Final Word

From the various benefits acts of federal government, you can understand that injured or disabled (on the job) employees or their dependents are given monetary benefits to compensate the financial loss. For further information on eligibility criteria, you can consult a workers compensation attorney with experience of your state’s jurisdiction.

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