In general, people who work are either employees of a governmental agency or private sector employees. If people are in the private sector, then they are not employees of a governmental, either local, state or federal, agency. Private sector employees have a variety of workplace laws that are in place to protect them in case of harm. For example, New York State law provides private sector employees with workers’ compensation coverage should the worker be hurt at work.
Governmental employees, on the other hand, are often subject to slightly different rules. In particular, federal employees in New York may not have identical state-level protections as private employees in the state. This is true when it comes to workers’ compensation claims. While claims for private employees are handled by the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board, federal employees must turn to the Division of Federal Employees’ Compensation (DFEC).
According to the United States Department of Labor, the DFEC has a big role to play in federal workers’ compensation cases. The DFEC is responsible for managing cases of employees who cannot work following workplace accidents. This includes making sure the cases are promptly handled, and, depending on the severity of the injury, a decision on the case could be made in as little as 45 days.
Additionally, the DFEC is responsible for paying the medical bills of workers who have been injured. These bills need to be paid within 28 days of being submitted. The department is also responsible for paying compensation to injured workers.
Finally, if an employee regains the ability to work, the DFEC can provide assistance to help the worker get back to work. This includes the right to return to the worker’s old job, in some cases.
Federal employees who are injured on the job need to understand the role of the DFEC and how to obtain benefits. While this blog post provides basic information, contacting an attorney may result in specific legal advice about a person’s case.