Injured And The Next Best Job Pays Much Less – What Now?

You’re a union plumber who has been on the job for 30 years making a solid hourly wage. Life is good and retirement seems to be on the horizon in another 10 years or so. That’s when the completely unexpected happens – you have an accident on the job that causes a devastating injury to your shoulder. The diagnosis hurts even more: You can’t do the job you’ve known for most of your professional life another day.

In fact, that’s just the beginning. Without any transferrable skills, the subsequent job you’re forced to take pays substantially less money. And being a different technological era, there’s little chance that you’ll ever make enough money now as you were making before.

Fortunately, if you’re injured and suddenly can’t work in a certain type of job anymore, there are remedies in the state of Illinois.

If the only subsequent job you can take pays you less money than what you were making, you’re entitled to what’s called a wage differential.

A wage differential is 2/3 of the difference between the average weekly wage you were making in the old job and the wage you’re making now in the new job until age 67.

How do you know if you’re entitled to a wage differential? If it’s clear that you can’t perform your old job anymore and you were injured on the job, then it’s time for a deeper conversation with one of our workers’ compensation attorneys at Gordon Gordon & Centracchio. Even in the face of limited work due to injury, there are real legal options. Talk to us about them at 312-332-5200.

The information you obtain on this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation. The information on this website is not a substitute for personal legal advice. While we invite you to contact us, please note that contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship, unless you are accepted as a client of the firm. Reviewing the information on this site also does not constitute an attorney-client relationship between you and Gordon Gordon & Centracchio, Ltd.