[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/how-long-does-an-employer-have-to-hold-a-job-for-someone-on-workers-compensation\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/how-long-does-an-employer-have-to-hold-a-job-for-someone-on-workers-compensation\/","headline":"How Long Does an Employer Have to Hold a Job for Someone on Workers\u2019 Compensation?","name":"How Long Does an Employer Have to Hold a Job for Someone on Workers\u2019 Compensation?","description":"Kentucky law strictly prohibits firing an employee because they have sought workers\u2019 compensation \u200bbenefits. However, many workers do not realize that an employer may legally eliminate an injured employee\u2019s position while they are on workers\u2019 compensation. Workers\u2019 compensation aims to support injured or ill employees until they return to work or provide disability benefits if […]","datePublished":"2024-04-22","dateModified":"2025-04-11","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/author\/mckinnleymorgan\/#Person","name":"Mckinnley Morgan","url":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/author\/mckinnleymorgan\/","identifier":14,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf85300712aac5f2f5566e909ece4e89ea565ca52ef8557588a55d3dd859d24c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bf85300712aac5f2f5566e909ece4e89ea565ca52ef8557588a55d3dd859d24c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/18-mcy-logo-blue.png","url":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/18-mcy-logo-blue.png","width":300,"height":300}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/How-Long-Must-My-Job-Be-Held-on-Workers-Compensation.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/How-Long-Must-My-Job-Be-Held-on-Workers-Compensation.jpeg","height":720,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/how-long-does-an-employer-have-to-hold-a-job-for-someone-on-workers-compensation\/","about":["Workers' Comp"],"wordCount":988,"articleBody":"Kentucky law strictly prohibits firing an employee because they have sought workers\u2019 compensation \u200bbenefits. However, many workers do not realize that an employer may legally eliminate an injured employee\u2019s position while they are on workers\u2019 compensation.Workers\u2019 compensation aims to support injured or ill employees until they return to work or provide disability benefits if they are unable to return to work. But workers\u2019 compensation law does not protect the injured or ill worker\u2019s position from elimination.An injured or ill employee who deserves workers\u2019 compensation should never avoid filing for benefits for fear of losing their job. If you have been put out of work because of a job-related injury or illness in Kentucky, the experienced workers\u2019 compensation lawyers of Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer want to help you seek the benefits you deserve and counsel you about preserving your job if it is threatened.Contact us today\u00a0to set up your free consultation with a workers\u2019 comp lawyer with the Kentucky Courage\u2122 to stand up and fight for you.What You Need to Know About Job Security While on Workers\u2019 CompEmployers are not responsible for keeping a job open for injured employees while they are out of work and receiving workers\u2019 compensation or for providing the same job upon the employee\u2019s return. Even when working under doctor\u2019s restrictions for light duty, the employee\u2019s job may be terminated.However, the employer must have a legitimate reason for eliminating the workers\u2019 comp recipient\u2019s job or position, such as\u00a0a reduction-in-force layoff or other business rationale. They cannot fire or lay off an employee simply because they sought workers\u2019 compensation benefits. Kentucky law says, \u201cNo employee shall be harassed, coerced, discharged, or discriminated against in any manner whatsoever for filing and pursuing a lawful claim\u201d under Kentucky Revised Statutes Chapter 342, which establishes and regulates the workers\u2019 compensation program.However, an injured employee\u2019s disability may be a legitimate reason for letting them go without eliminating their job. If an employee requires reasonable accommodations to perform the essential functions of their job, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires\u00a0private employers with 15 or more employees to provide them. But if no reasonable accommodation can be made to allow the employee to perform the essential functions of their job correctly, the employer does not have to keep the employee on.Essential functions are job duties that are fundamental to the position \u2013 the reason the job exists. The employer has the right to decide what a job\u2019s duties are. Accommodations are considered \u201creasonable\u201d if they do not create an undue hardship or a direct safety threat.The principle is that businesses aren\u2019t required to suffer financial harm to accommodate workers\u2019 comp recipients. They don\u2019t have to keep jobs open that they have legitimate reasons to eliminate, and they do not have to spend exorbitant amounts of money, jeopardize other workers, or change the nature of a job to accommodate a worker\u2019s disability.Can You Collect Workers\u2019 Compensation After Being Let Go?Workers\u2019 compensation benefits are meant to support you until you have recovered or provide disability compensation if you are permanently disabled. Your benefits \u2013 payment of all medical bills and replacement of up to two-thirds of your lost wages \u2013 should continue regardless of your employment status.If you are still under a doctor\u2019s care and cannot work or can only work under restrictions, you should continue to receive workers\u2019 compensation benefits after being fired.Being terminated for disciplinary reasons is the exception to this. If you were fired for misconduct, your employer\u2019s obligation to provide workers\u2019 compensation benefits also terminates.Feeling Unjustly Treated by Your Employer?If you have been fired for seeking or obtaining workers\u2019 compensation in Kentucky, you have the right to sue your former employer. In a successful suit, you may recover:Lost wages since being fired (back pay) and that you would have earned in the future (front pay)Compensation for emotional distress and mental anguishCompensation for damage to your reputationAttorney\u2019s fees and costsKentucky law allows you to file a lawsuit if your employer harasses, coerces, discharges, or discriminates against you in any manner for having sought workers\u2019 compensation benefits. These illegal actions might look like your employer:Pressuring you to return to work before you have fully recoveredThreatening to eliminate your jobFailing to provide reasonable accommodations needed to perform your jobSegregating you from other employees upon your return to workWithholding appropriate pay raises or promotionsTrying to turn other employees against you and creating an adverse work environmentEngaging in, encouraging, or allowing abusive behavior, such as jokes and mocking, meant to demean you for being disabledContact a KY Workers\u2019 Compensation Attorney About Mistreatment After a ClaimSome employers will unlawfully fire employees on workers\u2019 compensation because they want to save money and think the injured workers will not know what they can do about it. But at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, we\u2019re ready to teach you about your rights as an injured worker and help you fight back against mistreatment from your employer.We know it takes Kentucky Courage\u2122 to take a stand against an employer intent on running you off or making your work life miserable after a workers\u2019 compensation claim. We are prepared to stand up for you. Our workers\u2019 compensation attorneys will fight to make sure you\u2019re getting the workers\u2019 comp benefits you deserve, and we\u2019ll help you sue to seek compensation for any mistreatment or wrongful termination you have been subjected to. Remember, a lawsuit can demand your employer pay your attorneys\u2019 fees, meaning the case could cost you nothing.Contact us today for your free consultation with one of our\u00a0workers\u2019 compensation attorneys. We take cases from across Kentucky at offices in Lexington, Somerset, Manchester, North & South London, Hazard, Paducah, Paintsville, Prestonsburg, and Princeton."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How Long Does an Employer Have to Hold a Job for Someone on Workers\u2019 Compensation?","item":"https:\/\/www.kentuckycourage.com\/blog\/how-long-does-an-employer-have-to-hold-a-job-for-someone-on-workers-compensation\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]