An employer who is stopping or discouraging you from seeking workers’ compensation for a work injury is most likely acting illegally. Unfortunately, this happens more often than it should. Employers have an unavoidable conflict of interest because of how the workers’ compensation system is set up. The more workplace injuries that occur, the more expensive it becomes for the company.
Simply put, employers don’t want to spend their profits paying for workplace injuries. Even the best employers can find themselves torn between meeting the company’s bottom line and taking care of their employees.
As a result, some employers illegally avoid workers’ compensation claims. The proper way to avoid workplace injuries is through prevention — using safety procedures, investing in safety equipment, and training employees. Problems arise, however, when an employer goes too far and uses illegal measures to avoid work comp claims. In Minnesota, employees are protected from discriminatory practices by employers who try to stop or discourage an employee from seeking workers’ compensation benefits. These practices typically fall into three categories:
- Getting fired because you have requested or are receiving workers’ compensation
- Being threatened with termination for requesting or receiving workers’ compensation
- Being intentionally obstructed from requesting workers’ compensation
When an injured employee tells me that they’ve experienced one of the above situations, a huge red flag goes up. To help you understand if your situation falls into one of these categories, let’s look at each one in more detail.
Fired or Terminated Because of Workers’ Comp
If you were fired from your job because you applied for or are receiving workers’ comp benefits, this is a major red flag.
In Minnesota, workers’ compensation laws make it illegal for an employer to terminate you simply because you are seeking or receiving workers’ compensation benefits. Many employers know they cannot fire an employee in retaliation for seeking or receiving workers’ compensation—but it still happens.
An employer may fire you and openly say it’s because of your workers’ compensation claim, but that’s rare. More commonly, an employer will use a pretextual reason to fire you—claiming it’s for a legitimate cause when it’s really in retaliation for your work comp claim.
Keep in mind that while you’re protected from being fired for seeking or receiving work comp benefits, employers can still terminate employees for unrelated, legitimate reasons. However, if you suspect the real reason for your termination is tied to your claim, you may still have a strong retaliation case.
Threatened with Termination Because of Workers’ Compensation
This situation is even more common than retaliatory termination for two reasons:
- Employers may believe they can get away with threats more easily than actually firing someone.
- Supervisors may not understand the seriousness of threatening to fire or terminate an injured employee because of a workers’ compensation claim. It’s the employer’s responsibility to ensure supervisors do not make such threats—ignorance is not an excuse.
If your employer has threatened to fire you for seeking workers’ compensation, you may have a retaliation claim. Threats can take many forms, and every situation is different. Any threat to terminate you for pursuing workers’ comp benefits is a red flag that warrants a thorough assessment by an attorney.
Intentionally Obstructing Your Workers’ Compensation Claim
Intentional obstruction is even more common than firing or threats. Each case is unique because there are countless ways an employer can obstruct your claim. Examples include:
- Your supervisor telling you the company cannot afford a claim, so you shouldn’t file a First Report of Personal Injury or make a claim.
- Your manager threatening to make your work life miserable if you report your injury.
- Your employer cutting your pay after you file a workers’ compensation claim.
Obstruction cases require investigation by a knowledgeable work comp attorney due to the wide variety of tactics employers use to block employees from receiving their rightful benefits.
Next Steps: Make a Plan of Action
If you’ve experienced any of these red flags, your relationship with your employer has likely become strained due to your workplace injury. It’s frustrating and unfair when your employer stops fighting for you and instead fights against you—especially when you were injured while doing your job. Because a workplace injury can have long-term consequences for your physical and financial well-being, it’s important to fight for your rights now to minimize its future impact.
If this red flag situation sounds familiar or you believe you aren’t receiving the workers’ comp benefits you deserve, we encourage you to speak with an attorney as soon as possible. Our attorneys have extensive experience handling workers’ compensation claims and are available to discuss your case. To speak with a Minneapolis workers’ compensation attorney at 612-INJURED, call or text us at (612) 465-8733.