workman's comp

lkline

If an employee leaves a voice mail message, stating that her doctor has put her out on "stress leave", does that fall under workman's comp?

NeedCoffee

I really don't think so, as it's pretty hard to prove stress didn't come from other areas.

You pay your WC carrier for a reason - I would call and ask them. They may want you to submit a claim to be on the safe side, or they will ask for information that will help them determine whether or not it is a qualifying injury. I know California has some rather interesting laws in this area, so I would definitely defer to your experts. However.....

Most of the time, an injury is not covered under WC unless treatment beyond 1st aid is required.....staying home from work is not more than 1st aid, so I really wouldn't worry about it from a WC standpoint. Follow your normal procedures for attendance, FMLA, etc.

Good luck.

lkline

thank you for your response

NaeNae55

Coffee is correct. Employee could be going through a divorce, have a death in the family, or any number of things going on. Employee would need to claim work comp and then it would be up to the carrier to deal with it.

The only thing that would make me even consider calling my carrier is their insistance to be called at the first sign of trouble, or if the employee has been making statements that make me believe that the stress is job related. Tell your carrier everything you know about this situation and then leave it up to them.

Give your employee FMLA paperwork if the leave is 3 days or longer (assuming he/she qualifies for FMLA).

Good luck!

Nae