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Understanding The Texas Workers' Compensation Act

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Thousands of workers in the state of Texas suffer from work-related injuries each year. Fortunately, the state has a workers' compensation system to compensate employees for accidental injuries.

The Texas Department of Insurance states that employers in Texas are typically allowed to decide whether or not they will cover their employees under the state's workers' compensation program. Employers who decide not to accept the provisions of the program lose the right to assert certain defenses if the employer is sued by an employee for an injury. While most employees are eligible for workers' compensation benefits when the employer is covered, certain types of workers are not always eligible. Casual workers, independent contractors, and certain seasonal and migrant farm workers are not always covered.

Through the Texas Workers' Compensation Act, employees can get access to lost wages and medical benefits if they are injured on the job. An employee's injury must arise "out of and in the course of employment" to be covered by the workers' compensation program. This means that the injury must have occurred while the employee was doing some sort of duty that was directly related to his/her job. Employees who believe that they are working in an unsafe working environment can always call the Safety Violations Hotline at 1-800-452-9595.

The rules and guidelines for workers' compensation are constantly being developed and are frequently subject to change. An employee with questions about an injury in the workplace or about workers' compensation should contact a Houston employment lawyer to learn more.

Related Resources:

  • Your Right to Workers' Comp Benefits FAQ (FindLaw)
  • Workers' Compensation - Resources (FindLaw)
  • Locate a Texas Employment Lawyer (FindLaw)

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