Fired for Filing Workers' Comp in Oklahoma?

You got hurt at work. You did what you were supposed to do—you reported the injury and filed a workers' compensation claim. Then suddenly, your hours got cut. Or you got written up for things that were never a problem before. Or you were told your position was being "eliminated." You know what's really going on. It's payback for filing that claim.

This happens more often than employers would like to admit. But Oklahoma law is clear: retaliating against workers for filing workers' comp claims is illegal under 85A O.S. § 7. The protections are specific, and violations carry real consequences for employers. Despite these clear prohibitions, retaliation remains one of the most common forms of employer misconduct in Oklahoma, often cloaked in pretextual justifications that crumble under legal scrutiny.

What Oklahoma Law Says

Oklahoma's workers' compensation anti-retaliation law (Title 85A, Section 7) prohibits employers from discriminating against employees who:

• File a workers' compensation claim
• Hire an attorney to represent them in a workers' comp matter
• Institute or participate in any workers' comp proceeding

This protection applies from the moment you're injured and continues through the entire workers' comp process. Your employer cannot punish you for exercising your legal rights. If they do, you may have a separate workplace retaliation claim that goes beyond your workers' comp benefits.

What Counts as Retaliation?

Retaliation isn't always a dramatic firing. Sometimes it's more subtle—but just as illegal. Examples include:

Termination is the most obvious form. "We're letting you go" shortly after you filed a claim.

Demotion can mean a lower title, less responsibility, or less prestigious work assignments.

Pay reduction means cutting your wages or reducing your hours.

Schedule changes that make it impossible to keep your job—suddenly being assigned overnight shifts when you've always worked days, for example.

Harassment and hostility from supervisors can make your work environment so miserable that you feel forced to quit.

Denial of promotions or opportunities you would otherwise have received.

Disciplinary actions for things that were never enforced before, or that are applied to you but not to coworkers.

The common thread is that you're being treated worse because you filed a claim — not for any legitimate work reason. What matters legally is whether a reasonable employee would view the change as materially adverse. It doesn't have to be a full termination to be actionable. Courts have recognized that sustained hostility, even without a formal adverse action, can constitute retaliation when it would deter a reasonable person from exercising their legal rights.

How to Recognize Retaliation

Employers rarely say "we're firing you because you filed workers' comp." They'll usually give some other reason—performance issues, restructuring, attendance problems, policy violations.

But the timing and circumstances often reveal the truth. Warning signs include:

Sudden timing. You'd been employed for years with no problems, then you file a claim and suddenly you're a problem employee.

Changed treatment. Before your injury, you were valued. After your claim, you're being pushed out.

Inconsistent enforcement. You're being held to standards that aren't applied to others.

Pretextual reasons. The stated reason for your termination doesn't hold up under scrutiny—the "policy" you violated wasn't really a policy, or other people violated it without consequences.

Documentation that doesn't match reality. Suddenly there's a paper trail of write-ups and complaints that seem designed to justify firing you.

What You Can Recover

If you can prove retaliation, Oklahoma law provides real remedies:

Reinstatement to your former position, if you want it.

Back pay for wages lost from the date of the retaliatory action.

Reasonable attorney fees paid by the employer.

Costs of prosecuting the claim.

The law is designed to make you whole — to put you back where you would have been if the retaliation hadn't happened. In some cases, courts may also award punitive damages if the employer's conduct was particularly egregious or intentional. The availability of attorney fees is significant because it means qualified attorneys will take cases even when the underlying economic damages are modest, ensuring that workers at all income levels can enforce their rights.

The Intersection with Other Protections

Workers' comp retaliation often overlaps with other employment protections. If you're fired while recovering from a workplace injury, you may also have claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) if you qualify, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) if your injury qualifies as a disability, or Oklahoma's public policy tort if your termination violates other established public policies. These overlapping protections can strengthen your case significantly and may provide additional remedies beyond what workers' comp retaliation law alone offers.

What to Do If You Think You're Being Retaliated Against

Document everything. Keep records of any negative treatment after your claim—dates, what happened, who was involved, what was said. Save emails and text messages. Write down conversations while they're fresh.

Don't quit unless you have to. Quitting can complicate your case. If you can endure the situation, it's often better to let them fire you than to resign.

Get your personnel file. You have a right to see what your employer is documenting about you.

Talk to a lawyer. Retaliation claims have time limits, and the earlier you get advice, the better positioned you'll be. Most employment lawyers offer free consultations.

The Employer's Likely Defense

Employers almost always claim the action wasn't retaliation—it was for legitimate business reasons. They'll point to performance issues, attendance problems, or restructuring.

Your job (with help from your attorney) is to show that those reasons are pretextual—that they're not the real reason, or that they wouldn't have resulted in termination if you hadn't filed the claim.

Evidence that undermines the employer's stated reason is powerful. If they say you were fired for attendance, but others with worse attendance weren't fired, that's evidence. If they say you were fired for performance, but your performance reviews were good until you filed your claim, that's evidence. Employers who manufacture a paper trail after the fact — creating a sudden history of write-ups and warnings — often inadvertently create evidence of retaliation rather than refuting it. An experienced attorney will know how to identify fabricated documentation and use it against the employer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my employer fire me for filing a workers' comp claim?

No. Oklahoma law (the Burk exception and statutory protections) prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who file workers' compensation claims. Termination, demotion, or discipline motivated by a comp filing is actionable. If you've been fired without warning after filing a claim, you likely have a case.

How do I prove workers' comp retaliation?

You need to show: (1) you filed a workers' comp claim, (2) you suffered an adverse employment action, and (3) there's a causal connection between the two. Timing is often the strongest evidence — if you were fired shortly after filing, that's significant. Courts also look at whether the employer's stated reason is consistent with how it has treated other employees, whether the employer began documenting performance issues only after the claim was filed, and whether the employer's story has changed over time.

What damages can I recover for workers' comp retaliation?

Retaliation claims are separate from your workers' comp benefits. You can potentially recover lost wages, emotional distress damages, and in some cases punitive damages for particularly egregious employer conduct. The remedies under Oklahoma's anti-retaliation statute include reinstatement, back pay, and reasonable attorney fees. Because retaliation claims are civil tort claims rather than workers' comp claims, they are tried to a jury in district court — not before the Workers' Compensation Commission — which often produces more favorable outcomes for employees.

What if my employer says I was fired for a different reason?

Employers almost always offer a non-retaliatory explanation (poor performance, attendance issues, etc.). Your job is to show that reason is pretextual — for example, by demonstrating that similarly situated employees without comp claims weren't treated the same way. Our guide on hostile work environments covers how retaliatory behavior often escalates.

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This article is for general information only and is not legal advice.