Workers Compensation
Laws and legal information about workers compensation
Texas Supreme Court Workers’ Compensation Decision Sparks Controversy
Worker's Compensation and Premises Owners In general, workers' compensation is a kind of insurance that employers are required to purchase to provide benefits for employees who are injured while at work. In exchange, the injured worker is not permitted to sue the employer for additional compensation even if the worker believes the employer was negligent in a way that caused the injury. This is what is known as the "exclusive remedy" of workers' compensation insurance. But where the employer is a contractor who is working for the owner of the property where the work is being done, exactly who is considered the "employer" can become blurred. When a property or plant owner hires a contractor to provide workers on the property, they may agree with the contractor to pay for the required workers' compensation insurance on the contractor's employees in exchange for a reduced contract price. Then question arises - does the property owner now…
Workers’ Compensation Overview
Workers' compensation is a state-mandated system that provides benefits and fixed-monetary awards to employees who are injured or develop work-related illnesses on the job. In exchange for these benefits, an employee loses the right to sue his employer civilly, except in those circumstances where the employee was injured by an intentional or reckless act. An employee may be entitled to benefits even if there was a pre-existing condition as long as a subsequent work-related injury aggravated the condition. Additionally, an award of benefits does not preclude an employee from suing another person who may have also been responsible for his injuries, such as the manufacturer of a defective product. While most employers use insurance offered through a private insurer or a state-operated fund to provide workers' compensation benefits, some employers are allowed to self-insure. In some instances, an employer may not be required to provide benefits at all if the employer does not have a…