Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit: Do You Qualify?

The worst kind of assumptions to make in life are usually the ones that are made obliviously. Never make assumptions about your physical ability to continuously work at a pace that assures you will always be able to support yourself.

Many people assume that they will never get hurt at work. Or they believe that if they are injured at work, they will qualify for workers comp.

But just because you qualify for workers comp does not necessarily mean that you can return to the vocation in which you were injured.

Even if you and your employer amicably agree that you could return to your former position sometime in the future, you may not be able to.

Unless you qualify for permanent disability via an adversely life-altering injury, the average workers’ comp benefit lasts from three to seven years. And even then, some on-the-job injuries are too severe for employees to heal fully from and return.

Almost three out of every 100 workers are injured non fatally but severely enough to later qualify for workers comp. According to a 2020 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report, roughly 2.8 million American workers were severely but non fatally injured in the workplace in 2019.

Most workers injured severely but non fatally in the workplace missed an average of at least eight of work. But many workers get so severely injured that they become permanently disabled.

Severe workplace injuries, including life-altering injuries, can allow qualified workers to receive $60,000 to $92,400 in workers comp benefits.

There were over 888,220 workplace injuries in the private industry sector in 2019. Major workplace injuries included over 295,000 sprained joints and various torn and strained muscle injuries. Other injuries include about 90,000 lacerations, cuts, and punctures and 86,000 bone fractures and breaks.

In the course of healing from some of these injuries, some workers find that while they can work, they can’t go back to their old vocation or work there long-term. They have to acquire new skills, training, or certifications and find a new line of work.

And too many people who might know that they qualify for workers comp or who become permanently disabled after a job injury don’t know anything about the supplemental job displacement benefit, also known as SJDB.

Here is what you should know about a supplemental job displacement voucher and how to qualify.

Do you need assistance finding out if you qualify for a supplemental job displacement benefit? Then contact Invictus Law today.

Related: HOW DOES WEED AFFECT MY WORKERS’ COMP CLAIM

What is a Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit?

A supplemental job displacement benefit is a re-education, skill enhancement, and certification eligibility voucher that can be redeemed by eligible workers who were injured in the workplace.

Qualified injured workers will receive a supplemental job displacement voucher, also called a workers comp voucher, which can then be used at various workers comp retraining programs.

A qualified injured worker who cannot return to their original workplace, in the long-term or at all, can use a supplemental job displacement benefit to get a workers comp voucher to get education and retraining to find a new job.

So, a qualified injured worker who cannot return to a warehouse job lifting heavy objects can use a supplemental job displacement voucher to get the required training and certifications to become a paralegal, for example.

But let’s take a step back – what exactly is a supplemental job displacement voucher?

Supplemental Job Displacement Voucher

A supplemental job displacement voucher is a monetary benefit that a qualified injured worker can only use to pay for the expenses of learning new skills, education, equipment, or attaining new certifications for entry into a new career.

And a supplemental job displacement voucher can only be used to pay for skill enhancement and educational retraining purposes. A supplemental job displacement voucher cannot be connected to traditional workers’ comp benefit payments.

The average supplemental job displacement voucher is worth about $6,000. Voucher amounts and spending conditions and limits will vary according to the state of residence.

Your voucher may be worth anywhere between $4,000 to $10,000 depending on your personal circumstances and qualifications.

Such an educational retraining voucher can be used to pay for:

• Training courses at a state-approved course, school, or college
• Education, retraining, or skill enhancement classes at an eligible public school
• Certification and re-certification fees
• Tuition, textbooks, education, and retraining related fees
• Test and exam prep course fees
• Vocation counselor fees
• Computer, computer-related equipment, and software
• Equipment and tools required for education, certification, and skill enhancement courses
• Miscellaneous fees

Qualified injured workers will submit bills, tuition bills, and receipts to an employer’s insurance claims adjuster. Or you can request a school administrator or vendor to contact your employer’s insurance claims administrator for payment.

This payment verification process will continue until the supplemental job displacement voucher is exhausted.

When Does a Supplemental Job Displacement Voucher Expire?

A supplemental job displacement voucher will last at least two years from its initial issuance or five years from the date of the reported workplace injury.

How Do You Qualify For Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits?

The first step of the process is to undergo a complete medical examination and physical by a doctor and then get a medical report.

Your medical report must prove via doctor’s statements that a permanent or permanent partial disability prevents you from returning to work at the job you received your injury.

You can also qualify for supplemental job displacement benefits if your employer does not offer alternate, modified, or regular work 60 days after receiving the doctor’s report.

After that, you or preferably your lawyer will send your medical report and an official request for the “Supplemental Job Displacement Nontransferable Voucher Form” to your employer’s insurance claims administrator.

You should receive the voucher less than 21 days after requesting it from your employer’s insurance claims administrator.

Get a Lawyer to Secure Your Voucher

The people who make the worst assumptions in life are usually qualified injured workers.

They may be qualified to get supplemental job displacement benefits. Unfortunately, they may not understand the process to secure it.

Attaining workers’ compensation or supplemental job displacement benefits is a complicated process. Don’t try to get it on your own.

If you need help getting a workers comp voucher, contact Invictus Law today.

Related: COVID-19 LAYOFFS: HOW TO RECOVER AFTER LOSING YOUR JOB