Out-of-State Workplace Injuries compensation
I Was Hurt While Working Outside Kentucky. Do I Still Have a KY Workers' Compensation Claim?
Kentucky law recognizes that many employees regularly cross state lines as part of their jobs. Construction workers travel to temporary projects. Truck drivers deliver freight throughout the country. Utility workers, sales representatives, healthcare professionals, and many others routinely perform work in multiple states.
Because of that reality, determining which state's workers' compensation laws apply is often much more complicated than simply identifying where the accident occurred.
The Location of the Accident Doesn't Always Control
Many people assume the analysis begins and ends with one question:
"Where did the accident happen?"
Sometimes that's enough.
Many times, it isn't.
Kentucky has adopted a law—KRS 342.670—that addresses when Kentucky's workers' compensation system applies to injuries occurring outside the Commonwealth. Lawyers often refer to these cases as involving extraterritorial jurisdiction, but the basic concept is fairly simple:
Sometimes Kentucky law continues to protect injured workers even though the accident happened somewhere else.
How Does Kentucky Decide?
Every case is different, but several facts frequently become important. For example:
The Injury Happened in Kentucky
If you're injured while working in Kentucky, Kentucky's workers' compensation laws will usually apply, even if your employer is located in another state.
Example:
An Indiana electrical contractor sends one of its employees to Louisville to perform work on a commercial project. While working in Kentucky, the employee falls from a ladder.
Kentucky's workers' compensation laws may apply even though the employer is headquartered in Indiana.
Your Employment Is Principally Localized in Kentucky
Many employees are based in Kentucky even though they occasionally travel to neighboring states for work.
When an employee's employment is principally localized in Kentucky, a temporary assignment outside the Commonwealth does not necessarily eliminate Kentucky workers' compensation coverage.
Example:
A Bowling Green construction company sends one of its foremen to Nashville for a two-week project. During the assignment, he suffers a serious shoulder injury.
Although the accident occurred in Tennessee, Kentucky workers' compensation laws may still apply because his employment remained principally localized in Kentucky.
Your Base of Operations Is in Kentucky
Some employees routinely work in several different states but begin and end their work in Kentucky.
Those facts can become important when determining whether Kentucky's workers' compensation laws apply.
Example:
A truck driver reports to a terminal in Bowling Green every week, receives dispatches there, and returns there between deliveries. While making a delivery in Illinois, he's involved in a serious collision.
Although the accident happened outside Kentucky, his employment relationship may still fall within Kentucky's workers' compensation system.
What Does "Principally Localized" Mean?
One of the most important concepts found in KRS 342.670 is whether your employment is principally localized in Kentucky.
That doesn't necessarily mean where your employer's corporate headquarters is located.
Instead, the law looks more closely at where your employment relationship is centered.
Questions that often become important include:
- Where do you normally report to work?
- Where are your work assignments issued?
- Where are you supervised?
- Where do you regularly perform your job?
- Is your work in another state only temporary?
- Is your job inherently multi-state?
No single fact automatically answers the question.
Instead, all of the circumstances are considered together.
Some Workers May Have More Than One Possible Jurisdiction
In certain situations, an injured worker may have rights under more than one state's workers' compensation laws.
Determining whether another state's workers' compensation system also applies—and how pursuing benefits there may affect your rights under Kentucky law—often requires careful legal analysis.
For that reason, it's usually a good idea to understand your options before assuming where your claim should be filed.
What If Kentucky Workers' Compensation Doesn't Apply?
Even if Kentucky's workers' compensation laws ultimately do not govern your claim, that does not necessarily mean you've reached the end of the road.
Some workers are covered by specialized federal compensation systems, while others may have the right to pursue a negligence claim depending upon the nature of their employment and the circumstances surrounding their injury.
Don't Guess Which State's Laws Apply
Jurisdictional issues are among the most complicated questions in workers' compensation law.
Many injured workers incorrectly assume they must file their claim in the state where the accident happened. Others assume their employer's headquarters controls the answer.
Neither assumption is always correct.
If you've been injured while working outside Kentucky—or if you regularly work in more than one state—we'd be happy to review your employment relationship and help determine whether Kentucky's workers' compensation laws may apply to your claim.