Employer Retaliation against the Workers' Compensation Claimant

Did you know that by the 1920s almost all US states had some type of workers' compensation system? To learn more about your state's workers' compensation laws, contact an experienced attorney.

What Are the Vocational Rehabilitation Rights of Injured Workers?

After a workplace injury, notify your employer and get the medical treatment you need. Next, talk with a lawyer before you talk to the insurance company. Let us help you preserve your rights by calling us toll free at 866-763-6433.

Vocational rehabilitation is the process of rebuilding work skills as part of recovering from an injury or illness. Sometimes an injured individual can eventually return to his or her previous job. If an injury places long-term or permanent limitations upon the person, retraining for a new type of job may be necessary. Depending upon the law of your state, if you require vocational rehabilitation after a job injury or industrial illness, your employer or its workers' compensation insurer, or the state, or some combination of these three resources may be required to pay for your vocational rehabilitation services as part of your workers' compensation benefits.

If you or a loved one was injured or sickened on the job, consult a knowledgeable attorney as soon as possible at The Hoffmann Law Firm, L.L.C. in Saint Louis, MO, to learn what types of workers' compensation benefits your state allows, including vocational rehabilitation.

Examples

The amount and types of vocational rehabilitation provided to injured employees vary from state to state. Some of the vocational-rehabilitation services to which an injured worker may be entitled include:

On-the-job training
Transferable-skills analysis and testing
Resume and job-application services
Interview coaching
Labor-market surveys
Job analyses
Job-search assistance
Wage-assessment evaluations
Counseling
Ergonomics assessment
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) reasonable-accommodation assistance
Education and tuition payments for retraining

The actual vocational-rehabilitation benefits to which an injured employee will be entitled are determined not only by the employee's specific situation, but also by state statutory and regulatory limitations.

Employee Responsibility

In many states, employees have a responsibility to accept appropriate vocational rehabilitation services. Inherent in this responsibility is the requirement that the employee cooperate with vocational-rehabilitation efforts and make a valid attempt to return to suitable employment. Other states have different types of requirements. In certain states, for example, an injured employee is not required to participate in either physical rehabilitation or vocational rehabilitation, but a refusal to participate may affect eligibility for other workers' compensation benefits.

Warning to Employees: Depending on the state, if an employee does not cooperate with rehabilitation service providers, the workers' compensation carrier may reduce, if not suspend, wage-loss benefits during the time the employee refuses services. There may also be other negative consequences.

Employer Responsibility

Employers or their workers' compensation carriers may have statutory and regulatory responsibilities related to vocational rehabilitation. For example, a state may require an employer to offer rehabilitation counseling services to any employee who has injuries that result in a particular amount of lost time from work and the offer must be made within a certain number of days after the threshold has been reached. The details of such requirements may vary depending on the type of injury.

In some states, an employer may be required to pay for items such as tuition, living expenses, room and board, child-care expenses and travel expenses in addition to regular wage-loss benefits while an employee is participating in certain vocational-rehabilitation programs. Sometimes only specifically qualified individuals are allowed to provide vocational rehabilitation assistance to injured workers. For example, only individuals who are Certified Rehabilitation Counselors (CRCs), Certified Disability Management Specialists (CDMSs) or Certified Case Managers (CCMs) may provide vocational-rehabilitation assistance to injured employees in some jurisdictions.

Conclusion

The laws regarding the vocational-rehabilitation responsibilities of employers, insurers and claimants vary by state. If you or a loved one has a work-related injury or disease, a skilled lawyer at The Hoffmann Law Firm, L.L.C. in Saint Louis, MO, can answer your questions about the right to vocational rehabilitation.

DISCLAIMER: This site and any information contained herein are intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Seek competent legal counsel for advice on any legal matter.

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Employer Retaliation against the Workers' Compensation Claimant

Workers' compensation is sometimes viewed as a compromise between employees and employers: workers give up the right to sue for large awards in court in exchange for certain and timely, albeit relatively lower, reimbursement for work-related injuries and illnesses. Employers accept responsibility for these injuries and illnesses even if they are not at fault, but they no longer have to worry about being tied up in court or about potential liability for large verdicts.

Unfortunately, even in this spirit of compromise, sometimes an employer may retaliate against an employee for filing or even talking about filing a workers' compensation claim. In most states, employees have legal rights and remedies in response to such adverse employer actions. If you encounter retaliation from your employer in a workers' compensation matter, an experienced workers' compensation attorney at The Hoffmann Law Firm, L.L.C. in Saint Louis, MO, can advise you of your legal options.

Examples of Retaliation

Most commonly, people think of employer retaliation in the form of retaliatory discharge — unjustly firing an employee for pursuing his or her workers' compensation rights. But improper employer retaliation can also come in other forms short of termination, such as discrimination or harassment in the following ways:

Undeservedly poor performance review
Failure to promote
Adverse wage action
Isolation or intimidation in the workplace
Demotion
Threats of adverse action
Negative reassignment, reclassification or transfer
Interference with the workers' compensation claims process
Refusal to rehire
Negative action vis-à-vis employment benefits or terms of employment, such as insurance, vacation or scheduling
Unreasonable increase or decrease in job duties
Unwarranted disciplinary action
Undeservedly negative employment references
Retaliation against a co-employee testifying in support of a claimant or cooperating in the investigation

Legal Remedies for Retaliation

Although a relatively recent development, most states have some legal remedy for employees whose employers have retaliated against them for taking workers' compensation action. Many states have legislatively created legal protections for such employees. These remedies may be available through state agencies and/or in court actions. Even where legislative action has not protected such workers, many states' courts have allowed retaliatory discharge lawsuits for exercising workers' compensation rights. Some states allow both statutory and court-created or common-law remedies; other states may only provide for one or the other. The remedies available vary from state to state, so it is a good idea to consult a lawyer to learn about your particular options.

Even if your state has not recognized these remedies for employer retaliation in the workers' compensation setting, there may be other ways to find legal help.

Justifiable Employer Action

Employers may still legitimately terminate or discipline any employee, regardless of workers' compensation status, as long as the negative action is not a pretext for workers' compensation retaliation and the action does not violate any other employment laws.

Speak to a Workers' Compensation Lawyer

Stand up for yourself if you have been the victim of employer retaliation in response to the exercise of your workers' compensation rights. An attorney from The Hoffmann Law Firm, L.L.C. in Saint Louis, MO, can advise you of the law in your state surrounding workers' compensation retaliation.

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