Can I Get Fired For Collecting Workers’ Compensation?

When a person is injured on the job in Florida, they will – most of the time – be able to receive workers’ compensation benefits while away from your job. Your employer is not required to ‘hold’ your job while you are out, but many will have it ready and waiting for you when you return. Some, however, may find a reason to terminate you or even act in ways that are against the law. If this happens to you, enlisting an attorney ASAP is crucial.

Employers Do Not Have To ‘Hold’ Your Job

Workers’ compensation is the ‘exclusive remedy’ in Florida for an injured worker, which means that an employee waives the right to sue their employer over an on-the-job injury in exchange for receiving workers’ compensation benefits in all but the rarest circumstances. There are a few exceptional situations in which an employee would be barred from collecting benefits, but in most cases, they are paid without regard to fault.

Most employers see this as the fairest possible outcome for all involved. Unless an employee’s injury is the direct result of their own negligence, they receive the benefits they need to stay afloat while out with an injury, and in return, an employer does not have to worry about being sued over someone being hurt on the job. However, this does not mean that an employee will always have a job to return to after recuperating – and sometimes, this may even appear to be legal.

The Reason Matters

Florida law explicitly forbids an employer from firing an employee as a direct result of their collecting workers’ compensation benefits. If this happens to you, be aware this is retaliation, and is actionable under state law. An employer who engages in retaliation may be liable for lost wages and other money damages, if you are able to prove their motivation.

That said, if an employer has another reason – real or imaginary – for terminating you while you are out on workers’ compensation, a court will likely uphold the termination. Florida is an ‘at-will’ state, meaning that either the employee or employer can terminate the employment relationship at any time (at least in theory). If an employer can offer a legitimate reason for letting the employee go – for example, company-wide layoffs or a desire to save money – this is considered permissible, rather than retaliatory.

Contact An Orlando Workers’ Compensation Attorney

Being injured at work can throw a wrench into anyone’s plans. If this has happened to you, be aware of what your employer is – and is not – required to do in terms of helping you keep your job. An Orlando workers’ compensation attorney from the Hornsby Law Group may be able to help. Call our office to schedule a consultation.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0400-0499/0440/Sections/0440.094.html