A client complaining of a work injury may have a claim for workers’ compensation benefits. Louisiana’s Workers’ Compensation Law is the general statutory scheme for compensating employees who have suffered a work-related injury, regardless of citizenship status.1 The Louisiana Workforce Commission has some useful information.2 Certain occupations or classes of employees may be covered by special laws.
If your client complains of being fired or not hired after a work injury, there may be a retaliation or discrimination claim. An employer is not precluded from hiring or firing an employee who has made a claim, only from acting “because of” that claim. A discharge is not retaliatory or unlawful if it is based on the employee’s inability to perform the same employment duties because of the injury. An aggrieved plaintiff may sue for penalties up to 1 year’s earnings, reasonable attorney fees, and court costs. The claim is subject to a 1-year prescriptive period.
- 1La. R.S. 23:1021, et seq.
- 2See La. Workforce Comm’n.