Can You Receive Workers' Comp for Stress or Anxiety?

Workplace injuries involving stress are usually of the physical variety, resulting from repetitive movements that cause muscle strain and conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome. But work-related mental stress can also result in anxiety and other forms of psychological harm. This article looks at your workers' compensation claim options for harm caused by both physical and psychological injury experienced on the job.

What Are Physical Stress Workplace Injuries?

Examples of physical stress injuries related to work could include:

• an administrative assistant suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome due to keyboard work and other repetitive movement
• a warehouse employee suffering a chronic back injury from daily heavy lifting, or
• a construction worker experiencing nerve damage from repetitive use of a jackhammer or other heavy equipment.

In all these examples, an employee performs an activity at work over a period of time and suffers a physical problem as a result.

Making a Workers' Comp Claim for Repetitive Stress Injury

What are your options when it comes to these kinds of repetitive stress injuries at work? You usually can't file a lawsuit against your employer because of workers' compensation laws (which are in place in every state), but the workers' compensation system does provide a remedy to injured employees.

Workers' compensation entitles injured employees to a portion of their earnings while they're out of work because of a job-related injury. In most cases, to receive these benefits, you must make a timely incident report to your human resources department and/or to your company's workers compensation insurance carrier, and get the workers' compensation claims process started.

Medical Treatment and the "Independent Medical Examination"

Ordinarily, you must seek medical treatment so that a physician can determine whether your condition was indeed linked to jour job duties and functions.

As part of the claim process, you may be required to undergo an Independent Medical Examination by a doctor of the workers' comp insurer's choosing, to confirm that your injury is work-related. While this exam is deemed "independent," it is usually anything but. Learn more about the independent medical examination in a workers' compensation case.

What Workers' Compensation Benefits Can I Receive For Repetitive Stress Injuries?

For any repetitive stress injuries that weren't preexisting and which are related to your physical activity on the job, as part of your workers' compensation benefits you should be able to receive:

• weekly compensation benefits
• permanent impairment benefits
• payment of medical treatment, and
• vocational rehabilitation

Learn more about workers' compensation benefits.

Once you return to work, make sure to ask your employer to take steps to help you, such as making sure your work station is ergonomically correct, or limiting your lifting until you have fully recovered. And of course, make sure you follow your doctor's advice about restrictions on your work activities as you recover.

Can You Get Workers' Comp for Mental Stress Or Work-Related Psychological Harm?

Worker's compensation laws vary from state to state, and claims for work-related mental stress or other psychological injuries aren't possible in every state. One reason for this is that it's difficult to prove that emotional distress and similar non-physical harm resulted from your job as opposed to another area of life outside work.

In states where a workers' compensation claim can be made for mental harm, some or most of the following must usually be true:

• the psychological harm is linked to a physical work-related injury
• the psychological harm resulted from an unusually traumatic work-related incident
• you were forced to take time off of work because of the the psychological harm
• a mental health professional has diagnosed you with a condition that's linked to your claim of psychological harm, and/or
• the psychological harm has limited your ability to do your job.

Some states make it easier for first responders (like police officers, paramedics, and firefighters) to recover workers' compensation benefits for job-related mental health issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder.

California has perhaps the most employee-friendly rules when it comes to workers' compensation claims for stress and mental harm. Learn more about California workers' compensation claims for psychological injuries.

Can You Make a Mental Distress Claim Under Personal Injury Law?

If the conduct that causes you mental harm is serious enough, and if it's not covered by worker's compensation in your state, you might be able to step outside the worker's compensation system and file a civil lawsuit in court. Your options here might include a personal injury lawsuit for negligent infliction of emotional distress, or even intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Typically, you'll need to prove some pretty outlandish conduct on the part of the defendant (your employer or a co-worker), so these kinds of claims would usually involve more than just typical on-the-job stress. Learn more about emotional distress as a personal injury claim.

Disability Claims for Stress or Anxiety

In some states, you may be able to pursue a state employment or social security disability claim for job-related stress and anxiety, but these claims also set a pretty high bar. Learn more about filing for disability for stress.

What to Do If You're Suffering Workplace Stress or Anxiety

So, if you feel that you are suffering from emotional stress at work, what can you do? First and foremost, tell someone about it. Discuss it with your superiors and, if necessary, make a formal report.

Such documentation will become a part of your employment file and could be useful evidence no matter what type of action you decide to take.

If your company has specific rules about the way claims are reported, including to whom they are made, whether they need to be in writing, or whether there is a time limit for filing them (i.e., they must be filed within 60 days from the date of the event causing the injury), make sure that you follow those rules so that your rights will be protected.

It may also be helpful to talk with trusted co-workers and to have them make notes about events they personally observe, in case you need witnesses. Finally, keep a journal. Write down dates and events, who was present, what was said, and how you handled it. Be as specific as you can. The more detail you include, the more helpful if will be later if you decide to take legal action.