Can you terminate an employee on workers compensation

If the employee fails to return, by sending a final letter advising that you plan to terminate him or her by a certain date you reduce your liability significantly. Under the ADA, an injured employee who develops a disability preventing him or her from performing an activity required at the workplace, such as lifting or walking, may have certain protections against termination. If you have more than 50 employees at your business site, the FMLA requires you to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to an employee who has a serious health condition and has worked for you for at least 12 months and at least 1, hours during those months.

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All rights reserved. Hit enter to search or ESC to close. Close Search. No Comments. According to a new survey from FindLaw. Consult your state statute. Most of the laws cover employers with as little as one employee. The best practice before considering termination is to consult with your employment attorney first.

Do you know your company policies when it comes to the rules regarding terminations? This is very important when you are considering a termination. If the employee was given the report to complete, the representative should give the employee a deadline to complete it. If the employee needs to return the form via mail, the representative should direct him or her to mail it certified with a return receipt so there is a record of the date the employee returned it to the employer.

During the meeting, the representative should share with the employee the claims procedures, the benefits available to the employee and whom to contact for any concerns.

Items frequently covered in this discussion include:. Next the organization files the incident report with the company's workers' compensation carrier. Employers should check with their workers' compensation carrier for the available methods to submit the report. Some carriers prefer electronic submissions, whereas others prefer that employers use a telephone system. Some employers may also be required by state law to submit the report to the state's workers' compensation agency.

Employers should check with their workers' compensation carrier because it may file the incident report for employers. Organizations must maintain contact with the workers' compensation carrier on the employee's claim.

The employer may need to forward medical documentation to the workers' compensation carrier. Moreover, the workers' compensation carrier may have documents for the employer to complete.

These documents may request information such as the number of lost workdays, the employee's return-to-work status and any salary continuation to determine wage replacement benefits. The representative next informs the employee that the claim has been submitted and when to expect contact from the workers' compensation carrier regarding wage replacement and medical treatment.

The representative should then establish a schedule of regular follow-up on the employee's progress by telephone, mail or e-mail to let the employee know that his or her well-being and return to work are important to the organization. Establishing a timeline for the employee's return to work is imperative, as is making the determination about potential restrictions that may require accommodation and whether the employer will be able to accommodate the employee's needs.

The employer should have a policy in place that includes how leave interacts with workers' compensation. Returning an employee back to work should be one of the main focuses for the employer, even if it is in a light duty capacity.

The employer's policy should be a thoughtful, well-written document that can be administered with care, taking the employee's needs into consideration. Some workers' compensation carriers have resources to assist employers with their return-to-work programs. An employee's return to work may have doctor-directed medical restrictions that may allow the employee to return on restricted or light duty, which is typically less physically and mentally demanding than the employee's normal job.

If the employee is eligible for FMLA leave, he or she can accept the light duty assignment, which will not count toward FMLA leave because the employee has returned to work and is no longer taking leave. Alternatively, the employee can continue to be out on the available FMLA leave. The employer may not penalize or retaliate against the employee for opting to remain on FMLA leave. However, the employer is allowed to restrict the employee from receiving wage replacement benefits through workers' compensation and short-term disability when the employee opts to take the leave instead of working, based on the doctor-directed medical restrictions.

Making temporary accommodations to assist the employee in returning to work after an incident will be advantageous to the employee, making him or her feel connected to the organization and contributing to it.

As for the employer, making the accommodations can help reduce costs by decreasing the need for temporary help and overtime. It may also reduce workers' compensation rates. The ADA does not require an employer to create a position or to eliminate the essential job functions.

However, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission EEOC recognizes that employers may have to reassign or transfer an employee with a disability as a reasonable accommodation to an alternate position that meets the light duty restrictions if such a position is vacant or available, and the employee qualifies for it.

An employee's doctor may provide a fitness-for-duty document that states that the employee is not ready to return to work and may not be able to return for some time or not at all. In this case, the employer will have to look at whether the employee is eligible for additional leave under the FMLA, the ADA, state leave or leave under the company's policies and practices. Some state workers' compensation laws have anti-retaliation provisions that may preclude an employer from terminating an employee for being absent due to a work-related injury; other states have legal precedent limiting an employer's ability to terminate a worker receiving workers' compensation benefits.