Protecting Your Workplace Injury Rights: A Step-by-Step Guide
Protecting Your Workplace Injury Rights: A Step-by-Step Guide
Workplace injuries can happen in any job, from an office to a construction site. Knowing your workplace injury rights in Texas — and how they differ depending on your employer — is what actually protects your recovery.
Step 1: Seek Medical Attention Immediately
Get evaluated right away, even if the injury seems minor — some injuries, like concussions or internal damage, don’t show symptoms immediately. Medical records are also your evidence: they prove the injury happened and document its severity, whichever legal path you end up taking.
Step 2: Report the Injury to Your Employer
Report the injury promptly and in writing when possible, including the date, time, location, and exactly how it happened. This matters regardless of whether your employer carries workers’ comp — it’s essential for a comp claim, and it establishes the employer had notice if you end up filing a negligence lawsuit instead.
Step 3: Find Out Whether Your Employer Carries Workers’ Comp
This is the step most guides skip, and in Texas, it’s the most important one. Texas is the only state that doesn’t require private employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Non-subscribing employers are legally required to post notice of their status in the workplace and notify new hires in writing (Texas Labor Code § 406.005) — but many workers never see that notice, or don’t realize what it means until they’re already injured. Ask directly, or check your workplace postings, before assuming a comp claim is even available to you.
Step 4: Understand Your Rights
- The right to a safe workplace — employers must maintain safe conditions, and you can report violations to OSHA
- The right to medical care and wage support — through workers’ comp if your employer subscribes, or through a negligence claim if they don’t
- Protection from retaliation — it’s illegal for an employer to punish you for reporting an injury or pursuing a claim
Step 5A: If Your Employer Carries Workers’ Comp
File your claim through the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation. Complete the required forms, attach your medical documentation, and submit within the required timeframe. Workers’ comp is generally your exclusive remedy against your employer directly — you typically can’t also sue them for the same injury, with narrow exceptions.
Step 5B: If Your Employer Doesn’t Carry Workers’ Comp
There’s no comp claim to file — but you can bring a personal injury lawsuit directly against your employer for negligence. Under Texas Labor Code § 406.033, a non-subscribing employer can’t argue you were partly at fault, that you assumed the risk, or that a coworker caused the accident. You still have to prove the employer’s negligence caused your injury, but a successful claim can recover full lost wages, complete medical costs, and pain and suffering — damages comp benefits don’t cover even when available.
Step 6: Seek Legal Help
Whether your claim is denied, undervalued, or you’re navigating a non-subscriber lawsuit from the start, an attorney can gather additional evidence, negotiate with the insurer or employer, and represent you if the case goes to court or trial.
Step 7: Consider Third-Party Claims
If a party other than your employer contributed to your injury — a subcontractor, an equipment manufacturer, another driver — you may have a separate personal injury claim against them, regardless of your employer’s subscriber status. This can often be pursued alongside a comp claim or a non-subscriber lawsuit.
Step 8: The Two-Year Deadline
A non-subscriber negligence claim or a third-party claim follows Texas’s standard two-year statute of limitations (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003). Workers’ comp claims have their own separate filing deadlines through the DWC. Either way, evidence and witness memory fade well before a deadline arrives — acting promptly protects your case regardless of which path applies.
Step 9: Focus on Your Recovery
Follow your doctor’s guidance, attend every appointment, and keep detailed records of treatment and expenses. If the injury affects your mental health, seek support — that’s a legitimate part of your recovery and, in some cases, part of your claim.
Get help figuring out which path applies to you
Contact the Traub Law Office for a free consultation. Call (512) 246-9191 or reach out online.
About Andrew Traub
