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Can You Sue For An On-The-Job Injury? John F. Melton

I had an on the job injury due to broken products and my finger was broken. Can I file a lawsuit for the incident? Anything like negligence to employee safety, pain and suffering, etc?

-- Anonymous

A. 

Since you are from Texas, the answer depends on whether or not your company is a subscriber to the Texas Workers Compensation system. If the answer is yes, then you cannot sue but can file a workers compensation claim. If the answer is no, you usually have the ability to file a lawsuit. You then have to prove that the company was negligent, but you should first check with a lawyer in your area to determine the best course to take.

Texas is one of the few states that allows employers to not subscribe to the state workers compensation system. Practically every other state requires an employer to sign up for the state workers' compensation insurance for on-the-job injuries to employees. This usually means that an employee does not have the ability to sue the employer for injuries that occur at the workplace. The trade-off is that the employee does not have to prove the company acted negligently in order to receive workers compensation benefits, only that an injury occurred at the workplace and that none of the relatively few exceptions apply (such as intoxication).

John F. Melton Ross|Melton, P.C.
1104 San Antonio Street
Austin, Texas 78701
Austin employment lawyer

-- John F. Melton