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Workplace Safety and Insurance Board
"Your life is more than your work; your work is more than your job."
--Charlie King--
A workplace injury or accident changes your life. So does a chronic condition caused by your work, such as carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive strain injuries or hearing loss. While you are trying to heal or adjust, you and your family are faced with lowered income, an endless round of visits to Doctors and therapists, and the never-ending presence of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB).
You need to know if all your rights and interests are protected.
Your employer, the WSIB, and doctors, nurses and therapists other than your own may all have say in your case. They may send you in different directions. They may use terms, expressions or initials that don’t seem to make sense and they are in too much of a hurry to give explanations in plain language. It seems you are one file in a pile of files, and no one will ever pay attention to your special circumstances or answer your questions.
Wayne Lessard can assist in two important ways.
First, Wayne can offer you advice based on years of experience in dealing with the WSIB. Wayne will take time and make sure you understand your choices, why he believes a certain course of action is the correct one for you, and help you understand your rights.
Second, when you need an advocate to speak up for you with harried Claims Adjudicators, pushy employers, and health care people too busy to talk, Wayne will fight for you. Also, if your claim requires an Appeal, Wayne will be there to stand up for you – and help you stand up for yourself and your rights.
Here are three things to remember about the WSIB:
- It is important to seek advice early and plan effectively. If you have your own plan of action, it is harder for the WSIB and your employer to control your life decisions and affect your financial well-being. Your claim may take time to go through the system. You need to know you’ve done what’s right when someone must decide your case two years from now.
- You don’t have to accept everything WSIB says about you, your health, or your money. Adjudicators are not always correct. Yet, it is possible for a skilled practitioner to work with Adjudicators successfully to achieve the best results for you.
- Even though many changes have taken place in the "workers comp" system, it is still possible for a worker to get a fair shake -- if the worker has the right advice – and a representative who is vigilant. Many people say they can assist on a "comp" claim. Some will offer quick fix solutions or make promises about what the worker will "win". It is important to remember that there is no magic solution to ensuring a WSIB claim is successful. It takes steady work, an eye for detail, and the ability to argue effectively.
