Litigation Fundamentals – Worker’s Compensation and Retaliatory Dismissal of an Employee

Although an injured employee is still an at will employee under Illinois law, there are restrictions on the ability of an employer to fire an employee who has been injured in the workplace. One example which was deemed an illegal firing was when an employer discharged the employee because the employer believed that the employee’s claims for workers compensation benefits were exaggerated. An employee may not be discharged on the basis of a dispute about the extent or duration of a compensable injury. Clark v. Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 297 Ill.App. 3d 694 (1st District, 1998).