Frequently Asked Questions
Welcome to our most frequently asked questions section. Here
we have compiled the most frequently asked question our staff
handles everyday. If you do not see the question you would
like answered please contact us, or use our online contact
form to send us your concerns.
QUESTION:Under the Federal
Employees' Compensation Act, what requirements must a claim
for workers' compensation meet?
ANSWER: The employee must provide medical and factual
evidence to establish five basic elements:
- The claim was filed within the time limits set by the
FECA;
- The injured or deceased person was an employee within
the meaning of the FECA:
- The employee actually developed a medical condition (or
damaged a prosthesis) in a particular way;
- The employee was in the performance of duty when the
event(s) leading to the claim occurred; and
- The medical condition found resulted from the event(s)
leading to the claim.
QUESTION: Who is covered under the
Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA)?
ANSWER: All civilian employees of the United States,
except those paid from non-appropriated funds, are covered.
Special legislation provides coverage to Peace Corps and VISTA
volunteers; federal petit or grand jurors; volunteer members
of the Civil Air Patrol; Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets;
Job Corps, Neighborhood Youth Corps, and Youth Conservation
Corps enrollees; and non-federal law enforcement officers
under certain circumstances involving crimes against the United
States.
QUESTION: What is the time
limit for filing notice of injury and claim for federal workers'
compensation?
ANSWER: A notice must be filed within three years
of the date of injury. However, if a claim is not filed within
three years, compensation may still be paid if written notice
of injury was given within 30 days, or the employer had actual
knowledge of the injury within 30 days after it occurred.
QUESTION: May someone
other than the federal employee fill out a notice of injury,
illness or death to receive compensation?
ANSWER: Yes. Another person, including the supervisor,
may act on behalf of an injured employee or survivor and fill
out the employee's portion of Form CA-1, CA-2,
CA-5, or CA-5b. The person
making the report should complete and sign the form and then
submit it to the employee's supervisor.
QUESTION: How much leave am I
entitled to under FMLA?
ANSWER: If you are an "eligible" employee,
you are entitled to 12 weeks of leave for certain family and
medical reasons during a 12-month period.
QUESTION: Does the law guarantee
paid time off?
ANSWER: No. The FMLA only requires unpaid leave. However,
the law permits an employee to elect, or the employer to require
the employee, to use accrued paid leave, such as vacation
or sick leave, for some or all of the FMLA leave period. When
paid leave is substituted for unpaid FMLA leave, it may be
counted against the 12-week FMLA leave entitlement if the
employee is properly notified of the designation when the
leave begins.
QUESTION: Who is considered an
immediate "family member" for purposes of taking
FMLA leave?
ANSWER: An employee’s spouse, children (son or
daughter), and parents are immediate family members for purposes
of FMLA. The term "parent"
does not include a parent "in-law". The terms son
or daughter do not include individuals age 18 or over unless
they are "incapable of self-care" because of mental
or physical disability that limits one or more of the "major
life activities" as those terms are defined in regulations
issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA).
QUESTION: What is a Class Action
Lawsuit?
ANSWER:A class
action is a representative action wherein one or more
plaintiffs actually named in the complaint, along with their
counsel pursue a case for themselves and the defined class
against one or more defendants. The claims of the "class
representatives" must arise from facts or law common
to the class members. Most class actions are called "plaintiff
class actions;" however, in limited circumstances a class
action can be filed against one or more defendants representing
a group of defendants, i.e., a "defendant class"
action.
QUESTION: How is Affirmative Action different from
Equal Opportunity?
ANSWER: The federal government has defined equal
employment opportunity as the elimination of and remedy
for all discrimination. In other words, personnel policies
and practices must not discriminate against any persons because
of their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability,
age, sexual orientation, marital or covered veteran status
or any other protected class status.
An affirmative action program is a set of specific and results-oriented
policies and procedures to which a contractor commits itself
to apply every good faith effort. The objective of those procedures
plus such efforts is equal employment opportunity.
QUESTION: What is disability
retirement?
ANSWER: Disability
retirement is a right. Any employee who belongs to either
the Civil Service Retirement system (CSRS) or the Federal
Employees Retirement System (FERS), after meeting certain
threshold requirements, can collect a portion of his or her
salary if a medical condition prevents him or her from continuing
work in a government job. It is not a favor, a handout, or
a gift, but a right for which you have already paid through
contributions to your retirement fund. Whereas regular retirement
gives you the right to stop working and begin collecting if
you reach a certain age, disability retirement gives you this
right if you develop a disability, even if you haven't yet
reached retirement age. Just as the premium payment on your
fire insurance policy protects you against the loss of your
house due to fire, your monthly paycheck retirement deduction
protects you against loss of income due to disease or injury.
QUESTION: If I'm eligible
for both disability retirement and workers' compensation,
can I collect from both?
ANSWER: No. Government employees who are eligible
for both disability retirement and workers'
compensation cannot collect from both, except in very
special circumstances. Since there are a multitude of other
differences between the two programs, you should definitely
seek legal assistance if you are confronted with a choice.
Be aware, however, that you will probably not be able to find
a lawyer who will represent you in a government workers' compensation
case, given the government's shenanigans with legal fees in
such cases.
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