I’m going to tell you the tale of all of my recent troubles. About mid November last, I was informed by vocational rehab. that I would no longer be eligible for their help. The reason being that I was no longer able to actively job search due to my declining mental health. I was advised to reapply for Worksafe benefits.
I gave Worksafe BC a call, which they promptly returned a WEEK LATER. At that time I was advised to send in all the required information, which I did the very next day. It took another week to phone be back again, when they told me that it might be months for a decision. In the meantime, I had already received my last payment from Vocational Rehab, so I had no income coming in at all.
Next, I called up my LTD rep. to see if she could help. It took her four days to return my call. When she did call, she at least agreed to cover me while waiting for Worksafe to make a decision. I was told that I would be given funds on Dec. 17th. Well, the 17th came and went with no funds. I tried calling the worker back, and in another three days she got in touch. At this point, I was told that the check had only just been authorized and would be deposited into my account “early next week.” When I reminded her that early next week was Christmas, she very casually stated that, “Oh right, in that case, probably the week after.” She said it like it didn’t even matter, like I would just get the money whenever and it was all good.
Luckily, the check did actually go through on the 24th, so I didn’t have to go through Christmas broke. I did, however, get another surprise. LTD only pays out once a month, on the 17th. Now, even though this money has to last an entire month, it is based on earnings for the PREVIOUS month. Because I had received benefits up until Dec. 1st from Vocational rehab, the LTD people would only give me half of the benefits I would normally get. The problem is, I was expected to go from Dec. 17th to Jan. 17th on these funds, which amounted to half my usual income.
Well, I have scrimped and saved to make it this far. Here we are on the 17th again. I have 5$ in my bank account. I am out of food and, more importantly, out of my anti-depressants. My car is running on fumes, and I am desperately in need of clean clothes. There are also bill payments coming out of my account today. Yet, lo and behold, no money in my account, AGAIN!!! This morning, I called up my worker and left a message for her to contact me immediately. I expect I should hear from her next week sometime.