Workers comp for illegal immigrants may end

State senator’s bill targets undocumented workers.

COLUMBUS — Undocumented immigrants injured on the job would no longer get workers compensation benefits in Ohio, if pending legislation becomes law.

State Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, said he was surprised to learn that the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation doesn’t ask whether an injured worker is legal or illegal before cutting a check for benefits — something he deemed a “shameful practice.”
Seitz introduced Senate Bill 238 to require injured workers to submit a driver’s license, passport or other documentation proving they are in the United States legally before their workers’ compensation claim can be paid.

“This is grandstanding at its worst,” said attorney David Leopold of Cleveland, who is president-elect of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “It is not going to help keep Ohio any safer. It’s not going to curb illegal immigration in Ohio.”

Leopold said it wrongly emphasizes punishing the injured worker rather than focus on enforcing current laws against hiring undocumented workers.

Workers’ compensation is an insurance program that pays lost wages and medical costs for workers injured on the job. Employers pay premiums based on the number of workers, type of industry and business track record. Ohio BWC pays claims to tens of thousands of injured workers annually and has an investment portfolio of $34 billion.

It is unclear how many undocumented workers are in Ohio or how many are receiving workers’ compensation benefits.

Don Sherman of the Cincinnati Inter Faith Worker Center, which works with immigrants, estimates 150,000 to 200,000 undocumented workers are in Ohio.

He said undocumented workers often work in high-injury industries such as construction and meat packing and frequently do not receive adequate safety training. He cited cases of injured workers being dropped off at emergency rooms and being told by bosses to report that they were injured at home.

Seitz’s bill would do the following:

• Give an injured worker 28 days to submit proof that he is authorized to work in the United States, such as a passport or driver’s license. Without such documentation, the claim would not be paid.
• Allow an injured undocumented worker to sue his employer to pay for the injuries, provided the worker proves the employer hired him knowing that he was not permitted to work in the U.S.

Leopold said few undocumented workers would sue an employer for fear of deportation and possible separation from family members who are U.S. citizens. As a result, more employers would have incentive to hire undocumented workers because their injuries on the job wouldn’t be counted against them when calculating their workers’ compensation premiums.

Roger Geiger, executive director of the NFIB in Ohio, said his group has yet to take a position on Seitz’s bill, but he is concerned about unintended consequences such as added paperwork for businesses.

Noting that it’s unclear how many undocumented workers are receiving workers compensation, Geiger said, “If you fix it, does the remedy become greater than the problem?”

Wyoming, Idaho and Florida exclude illegal immigrants from the workers’ compensation system. Other states specifically allow benefits for injured undocumented workers.

Michigan bans such benefits but legislation is pending to allow them.