Fired or punished after a work injury
An employer may not fire or punish you for reporting a work injury. The federal OSHA rule, the 30-day complaint deadline, FMLA, the ADA and state protections.
Checked against official sources: October 31, 2026.
The federal rule
Federal workplace safety rules say your employer must have a fair way for you to report a work injury, and must not punish you for reporting it.
Employers covered by OSHA's injury records rule must tell each employee how to report a work-related injury or illness. The reporting procedure must be reasonable. A procedure that would discourage a reasonable employee from reporting accurately is not reasonable.
An employer must not fire or in any way discriminate against an employee for reporting a work-related injury or illness. Section 11(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act also prohibits this.
If you believe you were fired or punished for reporting an injury or raising a safety concern, you can file a whistleblower complaint with OSHA within 30 days after the action happened and was communicated to you. You can file online, by calling or visiting your local OSHA office, or by fax, mail or email to that office. OSHA's main phone number is 1-800-321-OSHA (1-800-321-6742). OSHA accepts complaints in any language. In states with an OSHA-approved State Plan, you can file with federal OSHA and with the State Plan. A complaint cannot be anonymous.
You, a former employee, or your personal representative can ask your employer for a copy of the OSHA 301 Incident Report about your own injury. The employer must give it to you by the end of the next business day, free the first time. You can also ask for the OSHA 300 injury log for a workplace where you worked.
Law: 29 CFR 1904.35(a)(1), (b)(1)(i); 29 CFR 1904.35(b)(1)(iv), 1904.36; 29 U.S.C. 660(c)(1); 29 U.S.C. 660(c)(2); OSHA, How to File a Whistleblower Complaint
File an OSHA complaint online · OSHA phone: 1-800-321-6742
State protections
Many states have their own rule against firing or punishing a worker for filing a claim. 36 of the 47 states we cover describe one on their page, and 36 name the law. The remedy, where to file and the deadline are different in each state.
Leave and returning to work
Job-protected leave (FMLA) The Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period for a serious health condition, and keeps your group health coverage. It covers private employers with 50 or more employees in at least 20 workweeks of this year or last year, all public agencies, and public and private elementary and secondary schools. You are eligible if you worked there at least 12 months, worked at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months before the leave, and work at a site with at least 50 employees within 75 miles. Time off for a work injury can count as FMLA leave if your employer designates it. If your doctor clears you only for light duty, you may turn down a light-duty job and stay on unpaid FMLA leave until it runs out, but you may lose workers' compensation payments.
Law: 29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.; 29 CFR 825.207(e); DOL Wage and Hour Division, Family and Medical Leave Act
Disability rights when you go back to work (ADA) Not every work injury is a 'disability' under the Americans with Disabilities Act. If yours is, an employer with 15 or more employees may have to make a reasonable accommodation, unless it would cause undue hardship, for example by moving minor (marginal) duties you cannot do to other workers or changing your schedule. The employer does not have to remove the essential functions of the job.
Law: 42 U.S.C. 12111(5)(A); EEOC Enforcement Guidance: Workers' Compensation and the ADA (Notice 915.002)
Keep a record
Write down what happened, the date, who said it and who saw it. Keep copies of letters and messages. A deadline to complain can be short, so ask the agency or a free legal office quickly.
Pick your state for its numbers:
- Alabama: Ala. Code § 25-5-11.1
- Alaska: AS 23.30.247
- Arkansas: Ark. Code Ann. § 11-9-107
- California: Labor Code section 132a
- Connecticut: Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-290a
- Delaware: 19 Del. C. § 2365
- District of Columbia: D.C. Code 32-1542
- Florida: Florida Statutes section 440.205 (Coercion of employees)
- Hawaii: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 378-32(a)(2), 378-33 and 386-142
- Illinois: 820 ILCS 305/4(h)
- Kentucky: KRS 342.197
- Louisiana: La. R.S. 23:1361
- Maine: 39-A M.R.S. § 353
- Maryland: Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. § 9-1105
- Massachusetts: M.G.L. c.
- Michigan: MCL 418.301(13)
- Minnesota: Minn. Stat. § 176.82
- Missouri: RSMo § 287.780
- Montana: Mont. Code Ann. § 39-71-317
- New Jersey: N.J.S.A. 34:15-39.1
- New Mexico: NMSA 1978, § 52-1-28.2
- New York: Workers' Compensation Law § 120
- North Carolina: Retaliatory Employment Discrimination Act (REDA), N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 95-240 to 95-245
- North Dakota: N.D.C.C. § 65-05-37
- Ohio: Ohio Rev. Code 4123.90
- Oregon: ORS 659A.040
- South Carolina: S.C. Code § 41-1-80
- South Dakota: SDCL § 62-1-16
- Tennessee: Tennessee retaliatory discharge law (court-made rule)
- Texas: Texas Labor Code Chapter 451
- Utah: Utah Code § 34A-2-114 (Unlawful interference)
- Vermont: 21 V.S.A. § 710
- Virginia: Va. Code § 65.2-308
- Washington: RCW 51.48.025
- West Virginia: W. Va. Code §§ 23-5A-1 to 23-5A-3
- Wisconsin: Wis. Stat. § 102.35(2)-(3)
Before you act
This guide is general information. It cannot tell you that you qualify or that a claim will be paid: the insurer, the state agency or a judge decides. Check the official sources on your state's page before you act.
Common questions
How long do I have to complain to OSHA about being fired for reporting an injury?
If you believe you were fired or punished for reporting an injury or raising a safety concern, you can file a whistleblower complaint with OSHA within 30 days after the action happened and was communicated to you. You can file online, by calling or visiting your local OSHA office, or by fax, mail or email to that office. OSHA's main phone number is 1-800-321-OSHA (1-800-321-6742). OSHA accepts complaints in any language. In states with an OSHA-approved State Plan, you can file with federal OSHA and with the State Plan. A complaint cannot be anonymous.
Free help
Free legal aid, your state workers' compensation agency and LawHelp.org can explain your options.