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Researching Your Eligibility for Federal Disability Retirement

September 24th, 2009 No comments
by Adam Blaser

Many people who work for the federal government have heard of, or know of people who, because of an injury or a mental issue, can no longer continue in their present job or position. In most of these cases an employer, or in this case the agency, will try to accommodate the employee by placing them in a different job, one that will allow them to continue to work and provide a necessary service to the agency.

But there are situations when an employee's condition prohibits them from working in any capacity. Cases like these are rare and extreme but they do happen. In these instances, a federal employee would be eligible for special disability retirement benefits put in place specifically for federal employees.

A federal employee may be eligible to receive what is known as a disability retirement annuity which pays them a portion of their salary for the rest of their lives. It is important to note, however, that this only applies to employees that were enrolled in the CSRS or FERS retirement plans. Be sure you understand what retirement program you are a part of before you try to arrange for federal disability retirement benefits.

This disability retirement program also imposes no stipulations on the recipient. If your condition improves, or you begin working in the private sector to supplement the funds you are receiving, it won't affect your eligibility to receive federal disability retirement benefits.

There is one major qualification that must be met to receive these benefits, which is that you must be subject to your condition, whether mental or physical, for at least one year. A recipient will find it hard to collect any benefits for a condition that only lasts for a short time.

And just because you may need or even deserve these benefits, there is no guarantee that you will receive them. There are many instances where the requests for federal disability retirement benefits are denied. There might be a good reason for it, or it might have been an error. Either way, it's a good idea to go seek assistance from a professional who understands the law.

The reality is that dealing with the Office of Personal Management and quite possible going before the Merit System Protection Board is no place for a person to be without an expert in the field of getting entitled benefits. These situations can require a skilled and experienced touch that most non-federal lawyers simply do not have. While no one is forced to hire a federal attorney, it would be wise to do so if you are at all interested in getting the benefits you deserve.

There is a lot of red tape to work through and federal disability retirement plans come with a lot of rules and regulations. Get the help of an industry professional and know the rights you are entitled to. It is not worth taking shortcuts, and though it might not be easy it will be worth it to protect your future income.

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Your Lawyer Can Help You With Your Federal Workers Compensation

August 27th, 2009 No comments
by Levi Fliggen

Everyone at one point or another will have an incident on the job where we might get hurt. Often times it is no more than a scratch or a bump, but there are those instances when the injury can be a lot worse. In those cases, when you are injured while performing work for your employer and that injury potentially can make working impossible during the healing process, you may be entitled to what is known as workers compensation.

And although some workers may not be aware of it, when you are employed by the federal government you are still eligible to receive these benefits. The title, however, is changed a little bit, and it is called federal workers compensation.

The federal workers compensation program includes a number of useful benefits. It can help you deal with everything from lost wages to paying off medical expenses. Part of the program might even secure your job, so that when you are finished healing it will still be in there when you come back. When you are recovering from an injury, these benefits lead to real peace of mind.

Even with better regulation, the government's Office of Workers Compensation has been known to reject compensation claims without adequate cause. For someone with a legitimate need for funds, this can be devastating. It often forces employees to return to work without proper healing, and at worst, may mean the inability to cover costs during recovery.

In those cases that you feel that you have been wrongfully denied your legally entitled benefits of workers compensation, there is very little you as an individual can do to change things. That is why it is so important to have an advocate on your side.

A lawyer who understands the ins and outs of the Federal Workers Compensation program will be a better advocate to overturn a claim denial and get the benefits for their clients. Hiring a lawyer doesn't mean that you're trying to convict the government of wrongdoing. It means that you have a case that may have been passed over upon initial review without receiving the attention it deserved.

The simple fact of the matter is that when an injury occurs at work, these benefits are absolutely necessary to get through the problem. And, unfortunately, these benefits can be denied for reasons that may not make any sense to the employee, and it seems like they are losing federal workers compensation for no good reason.

In any event, if you are hurt on the job, while performing your job, you are entitled to certain benefits, and you must do whatever it takes to receive those benefits. Sometimes that means having an expert in these matters working on your behalf.

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