Worker's Compensation Insurance

3 The Evolution of Workers’ Compensation The concept that workers should be protected from and com- pensated for injury or illness occurring in the workplace came about with the rise of the trade union movement at the begin- ning of the 20th century. Workers’ compensation insurance is a direct result of public awareness and outrage at the poor and often dangerous working conditions people were forced to la- bor under in order to make a living, and the financially devas- tating effects of worker injury or illness on the worker and the worker’s dependents. Workers’ compensation insurance is the oldest social insurance program in the United States; in fact, it is older than both social security and unemployment compensation. California adopted workers’ compensation laws in the 1910’s along with most other states. Workers’ compensation is based on a no-fault system, which means that an injured employee does not need to prove that the injury or illness was someone else’s fault in order to receive workers’ compensation benefits for an on-the-job injury or illness. Since almost every working Californian is pro- tected by the workers’ compensation system, it is important that employers and employees alike have an understanding of workers’ compensation insur- ance and how it works. What Benefits Are Available in aWorkers’ Compensation Policy? Depending on the circumstances of the injury or illness, injured workers are entitled to specific benefits as structured by workers’ compensation insurance. There are five basic types of workers’ compensation benefits that include medical care, temporary disability benefits, permanent disability benefits, supplemental job displacement benefits, and death benefits. Injured workers may be entitled to one or more of these benefits.