Labor Law Center Blog » Blog Archive » Alabama’s Worker’s Compensation Fraud Policies.

Alabama’s Worker’s Compensation Fraud Policies.

February 18th, 2006 Posted by John

At the end of the last entry, I noticed that there may be another entry in order, being that Alabama’s Worker Compensation Act is so complex. For this end I have decided to write this current entry, which discusses important provisions in the law regarding Fraud.

To begin with, these laws are set up in part by the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations (ADIR), which is a cabinet level government department within the state. The following is some of the important information about Fraud cited in Alabama’s Workers Compensation Act.

First, fraud in this case can pre-date the actual offering of employment to an employee. The law on false reporting states that an employee, their family and any other person involved with the claim with be unqualified if it is proven that an employee lied about having been previously compensated for an on the job injury previously. Or, if they lied about the nature of the Injury or a pre-existing condition which may have increased the severity of the injury that is being claimed.

Also the same as above is to be said for any purported radiation exposure, which the employee was subject to, prior to entering into an employment relationship.

The law also states that employer’s cannot create any scheme or mechanism, artificial or otherwise, to get their liability removed as an employer. This means creating their own definitions of employee and trying to bend the law to where an employee is not really an employee.

Last, employer’s cannot terminate or lay-off an employee because they suspect an on-the-job injury has occurred and the employer feels they are or may be liable. There may be further liability if an employer terminates an employee who has either filed, or is likely to file a workers compensation claim, in an attempt to get out of the claim.

The Alabama Complete Labor Law poster is available with the full details of all the worker’s compensation laws as well as all of the federal laws.