free consultation 715-845-9000

Work-Related Hearing Loss Claims

Do You Have a Work-Related Hearing Loss?

Do you sometimes have trouble hearing normal conversation? Does your spouse or friends mention that you often don’t seem to understand or hear what they are saying? Do you sometimes nod along when someone is talking to you even though you didn’t catch what they said? If so, you might have a hearing loss and should speak with a workers compensation hearing loss attorney.

Your Rights Under Wisconsin Workers Compensation Law

If you’ve suffered a loss of hearing due to a noisy work environment, you can claim workers compensation benefits for your permanent hearing impairment. Wisconsin law entitles you to these benefits even if your employer provided hearing protection, as these measures often do not offer 100% prevention of hearing loss.

Additionally, the law only requires that workplace noise exposure be a contributor to your hearing loss—it does not have to be the sole cause. Exposure to noise from other sources, such as military service or hunting, does not disqualify you from making a claim.

There is no time limit for filing a claim for work-related hearing loss, but call us right away so we can maximize your results. If you retired within the past 12 years, your claim will be directed to the insurance company of your last employer with significant noise exposure. For those who retired more than 12 years ago, benefits will be provided from a state-established fund.

Benefits You Can Claim

Hearing Aids and Medical Costs:

  • The cost of hearing aids, which have significantly improved in recent years but have also increased in price, is fully covered by workers compensation. (Many health insurance plans like Medicare do not provide coverage for hearing loss or hearing aids.)
  • This includes all doctor visits and necessary tests, such as audiograms.

Permanent Disability Compensation:

  • If your hearing loss is significant and permanent, you are entitled to a payment for permanent disability benefits, which can be thousands of dollars in additional compensation.

Workers compensation for hearing loss is typically tax-exempt and does not affect Social Security, pension, or health insurance benefits.

Who is Affected by Work-Related Hearing Loss?

People working in noisy environments, such as Paper Mills in Wausau, Wisconsin Rapids, Neenah, Rhinelander, and other factory settings, often experience permanent hearing loss due to loud machinery.

Filing a Workers Compensation Claim

If you believe you may have a work-related hearing loss, Attorney John Jokela would be happy to discuss your legal rights with you. It is most common for people to file workers compensation hearing loss claims after retiring from or leaving a job. It doesn’t matter if it has been many years since you have retired or left your job—you can still claim the benefits. It also doesn’t matter if your company has gone out of business or changed ownership. Workers compensation hearing loss benefits are still available because your claim is handled by the insurance company that provided coverage during your employment.

We will assist you in gathering your work history and any previous hearing tests. This information is very helpful for us in maximizing the compensation we can obtain. Once we have all this information, we will file your claim and handle the case for you going forward. All you have to do is call us and we will handle it from there.

Speak With Our Workers Compensation Hearing Loss Attorney

Call the John Jokela Law Firm, LLC at 715-845-9000 for a free consultation, and he can tell you exactly what you need to do to get started with a hearing loss claim. Attorney Jokela has two decades of experience handling work comp hearing loss claims. You don’t owe workers compensation hearing loss attorney John Jokela anything unless you hire him, and there are no upfront legal fees or costs. Attorney Jokela doesn’t get paid until you do.