Foster Farms employs roughly 10,500 people who work across their various California locations handling daily business tasks and processing an estimated 1,000,000 chickens and 12,000 turkeys daily. These numbers are staggering when you understand that the tasks are completed at only 16 facilities in these cities:
- Burrel
- Delhi
- Hickman
- Livingston
- Modesto
- Porterville
- Stockton
- Turlock
- Waterford
- Traver
- South El Monte
- Oakdale
- Merced
- Kingsburg
- Fresno
- Compton
But what is even more difficult to believe is that the average Foster Farms workers comp claim in California is worth only a little more than $21,000. While some of the injury incidents are sure to occur in offices where the work is less physically demanding, many are happening on the farms and in the warehouses and other facilities that require strength, stamina, and agility to get these vital jobs done. And when one of these boots on the ground workers suffers an injury on the job, they are likely to miss work and face costly medical bills. The outcome for many would be financial ruin if not for the benefits offered by California worker’s compensation. But the big question is, will the help that is offered by this program really provide enough to protect the future financial stability of these hard-working members of the community?
If you or a loved one recently suffered an injury while working at a Foster Farms location, please know that you are not alone in this difficult time. The exceptional legal team at Normandie Law Firm is here to help and just a phone call away. You will also be pleased to learn that our office experts can be reached 24/7 to get the answers and legal information you need to find peace of mind and hope to overcome the challenges you face. Once you have answered your immediate questions, we hope you will accept our generous offer of a free consultation with a seasoned Foster Farms worker’s compensation attorney to discuss the facts of your case in more detail. They will ensure you fully understand how to use the program and your rights as a worker who was hurt while on the clock at Foster Farms.
In addition, they will explain any other legal avenues that might be open to you if gross negligence was a factor in the injury incident you endured. We ask that you take the time to contact our office team at your earliest opportunity and book your free consultation. There are critical time limits that you need to understand to ensure you take action before the right to seek benefits or compensation expires.
Our Recent Verdicts and Settlements
$2.5 Million
$1.1 Million
$1.5 Million
$600,000
$525,000
$734,851
How Can I Be Covered By California Worker’s Compensation?
Many workplace injury victims who contact Normandie Law Firm fear worker’s comp does not cover them because they have never paid for the service or coverage offered by the program. However, they are incredibly relieved when they learn that it is the legal obligation of all employers in the state to participate in the program and pay the entire cost of covering their employees. The program was carefully designed to ensure that any person who is hurt while performing their job is not forced to bear the burden of costly medical care and other expenses. In a perfect world, all employees would understand the function of the program and never feel the added stress or worry of getting hurt at work and having those injuries result in financial hardships or ruin their future with excessive expenses and bills.
What Help Does California Worker’s Compensation Provide?
The first concern of most injured workers is the high cost of medical care. Many would ignore their injuries and never seek medical services because they know they cannot afford the cost of the care, even if it is needed. Understanding this thought process, the program is very generous in the coverage of medical expenses it provides to workers who are hurt on the clock. Each person can receive up to $1M in medical care coverage per injury incident.
These funds are typically used to cover everything from the cost of emergency medical services, hospital bills, doctor’s bills, and the expense of essential medical devices to rehabilitation or therapy needed to complete the healing and recovery process. It is also helpful to note that most medical care providers will bill their services and expenses directly to worker’s comp when you inform them that the harm was due to a workplace injury. This process helps take the stress of medical expenses and even credit issues off the shoulders of an injured Forster Farms worker.
The following common concern weighing on an injured Foster Farms worker is how they will survive with no paycheck throughout the time they are off work to recover. The worker’s comp program addresses this issue by providing up to 66% of the injured worker’s regular weekly income when they are at home recovering and unable to work. The funds are paid to the employee and can be used to help pay living expenses and other routine bills. If the injuries sustained were severe and the Forster Farms worker is left with partial or permanent limitations due to the harm they sustained, the program can provide long term partial or permanent disability payments to help offset a lack of earning potential or decreased earning capability because of the workplace injuries.
Finally, if the harm suffered in the Foster Farms injury incident prevents the employee from being physically capable of returning to work at the facility, the program will provide free vocational training. This phase of the program is meant to help workers with severe injuries and limitations transition to a new job once they have been medically cleared to work in another vocation.
Understanding What The Average Foster Farms Worker’s Comp Claim Amount Means To You
Many injured workers are fixated on the average claim amount paid to a Foster Farms worker who is hurt on the job. However, they need to understand that the average of only about $21K is not going to impact their claim amount. All this number means is that when all the claim amounts are combined and divided by the number of claims submitted, the average is roughly $21K. It also means that typically, the injuries were not extensive or extremely severe, and the cost of the victim’s medical care was not substantial.
When you are thinking about all the medical bills you could face because of your Foster Farms on the job injuries, please do not stress over this meager amount that is called the average claim value. Instead, know that the worker’s comp program will carefully evaluate the medical bills generated for your care and cover them until they reach the benefit cap of $1M. You should also feel confident that the compensation for your lost income will be based on what you earn each week and not the numbers for another employee or the average pay rate for all Forster Farms employees. The program is meant to help workers like yourself, and it will provide the services and benefits you need based on your injuries and prognosis.
Can I Sue Foster Farms For Added Compensation?
In most cases, the victim of a workplace injury incident is not permitted to file a personal injury lawsuit against their employer. They are only allowed to use the benefits of the worker’s comp program to cover their expenses and losses. This aspect of the worker’s comp program was included to protect employers from the cost and challenges of lawsuits in exchange for paying the cost to participate in the worker’s comp program.
A worker can only file a lawsuit for personal injuries against their employer when the incident involves gross negligence. Gross negligence is considered a complete disregard for the safety of others in this case. For example, if Foster Farms was aware of certain unsafe working conditions at one of its locations but refused to fix them, it could be sued for negligence if a worker suffered an injury due to those known and ignored hazards. Please reach out to Normandie Law Firm immediately if you think that gross negligence was a factor in your on the clock injuries suffered at Foster Farms.
What Is The Time Limit To Request Help?
As a worker who was hurt on the job at Foster Farms, you have 30 days from the date of the injuries to open a claim with worker’s compensation. If you try to open a claim after more than 30 days, it will be immediately denied, and you will not receive any benefits from the program. If your case involves gross negligence, you have up to two years from the date of the injury incident to file a lawsuit with the court. Again, if you wait until after the time limit has expired, your case will be denied, and you will not be permitted to seek compensation from Foster Farms for the losses and expenses caused by those workplace injuries.
No Added Stress At Normandie Law Firm
When you work with the legal experts at Normandie Law Firm, you never need to fear any added challenges or stress due to upfront legal fees or other expenses. Our firm only gets paid for our work after a lawsuit is completed, and our client has the compensation needed to cover their legal costs. In addition, if our team fails to win your gross negligence lawsuit against Foster Farms and deliver that much-needed compensation, you owe us nothing for our time dn financial investment in your case. Please reach out to our office today to ensure you understand the time limits imposed to ensure you get the help, benefits, and compensation you deserve for the workplace injuries you sustained at Foster Farms.
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