Letter: Illinois must fix workers' compensation rules
As an Illinois attorney, I've seen too many employees robbed of the settlements they deserve and too many employers restricted from working directly with employees whenever a problem arises in the workplace.
Our state has some of the most nonsensical workers' compensation laws in the country, forcing nearly all cases to the courts before employer and employee have a chance to work together to achieve a mutually beneficial solution.
Instead, both sides must lawyer up, pay expensive court costs, and leave very personal, impactful decisions in the hands of a court that doles out decisions based on impersonal, standardized precedent. Both parties lose.
In Illinois, small businesses are struggling to stay afloat, and workers and their families are paying the price.
On top of all the recent economic pain, they must fend off new tax hikes, while allocating even more dollars toward the inevitable legal expenses that come from our state's backward civil justice system.
Meanwhile, prices continue to skyrocket, workforces are shrinking, and politicians are turning a blind eye.
If we don't reverse course immediately, the futures of Illinois workers and families are in serious jeopardy.
Matthew Custardo
Naperville