No one goes to work expecting to be injured. However, unfortunately, sometimes that can happen. Depending on your injury, you may have to actually take time off work to heal. This is where workers’ compensation (workers’ comp) comes into play. Workers’ comp replaces wages and medical benefits to anyone who is injured at work. The tradeoff is that the injured employee gives up the right to sue the employer for negligence. One thing to keep in mind is that you will likely only receive 2/3 of your salary while on workers’ comp. Due to this, you will need to know how to budget for reduced pay due to an injury.
How-to Budget For Reduced Pay Due to an Injury: Workers’ Comp
Create a Budget
Making a budget can be really useful no matter what your situation is. Budgets will show you where you are spending your money. They will also make you take a good hard look at what areas you could cut back on as well. You will need to take a hard look at what is a need and what is just a want. If you don’t have a budget, create one. However, if you do have a budget already, you will need to re-evaluate it as a result of reduced pay due to an injury. Since you will have less income coming in, you may need to watch your spending and prioritize needs and wants.
Save Money
Once you have made a new budget, you will need to figure out where you can save money. There are some simple switches that can add up and save you money over time. Do you frequent Starbucks for your daily coffee? Instead, enjoy a cup of coffee at home. If you are able to cook, this can save quite a bit of money as opposed to eating out every day. If you do eat out, skip the pricy drink options and order water instead.
You may have to start cutting back on discretionary spending as well. This may mean not getting your nails done at a salon or holding off on buying those new clothes if you already have a closet full. Consider canceling some of your streaming subscriptions like Hulu or Netflix, especially if you have multiples. Paid subscriptions to Spotify and Pandora could go as well. Try and categorize things as essential or non-essential, and look at where you could cut back. Hopefully, this reduced pay due to an injury will only be temporary and you will be able to return to your normal routine as soon as possible.
Save on Essentials
Since it may be more difficult to cut back on essential items, you can at least try and save money on them. Plan your meals around things that are on sale at the grocery store. Look for coupons to save money as well. Opt for the store brands of common household products as opposed to name brands. Oftentimes, these savings can really add up and go a long way while you are receiving reduced pay due to an injury.