Legal Question in Employment Law in Georgia

Re: Injured by supervisor and then fired.

You were rather blatantly fired in retaliation for filing a workers comp claim. Unfortunately, Georgia does not have a workers comp retaliation statute applying to private employers like most states. Georgia is an "employment at will" state, meaning that unless a specific law or your employment contract bars it, you can be fired for anything. That is probably why attorneys have not been jumping all over it.

The first thing you should do is carefuly review the employee manual of your former company. If it clearly states that the company's policy is that it will not retaliate against workers for filing workers comp claims, then you may have a case for breach of contract and wrongful discharge.

Also, if you could show that in the past, the company has never fired men for filing claims, but has fired women, or at least no man to your knowledge has ever been fired, you might be able to reasonably claim that your firing was an act of unlawful gender discrimination.

Workers Comp law prevents you from suing the employer for any consequences of a workplace injury, as long as workers comp benefits are provided. However, you may be able to sue the employee for negligent or intentional personal injury. You may be able to include a claim for lost wages, contending that his act led to your retaliatory firing and loss of job.

Of course, if he has no resources, it will be an empty remedy. You can contact me at [email protected] if you would like to discuss it further. If I hear from you, I will provide you with my phone number if you would like to talk about it.