Eye Injury at Work Compensation in Queensland

Common causes of eye injuries at work

• Flying particles. Metal fragments from grinders, cutting discs and drills, and chips from hammering, chiselling and machining.
• Welding flash (arc eye). Exposure to the light from a welding arc without proper eye protection.
• Chemical splashes. Cleaning chemicals, acids, alkalis such as cement and lime, solvents and fuels.
• Impact. Being struck by a tool, a load, a strap or cable under tension, or a piece of debris.
• Dust and debris. Sanding, cutting, demolition and working overhead.

What WorkCover pays after an eye injury

WorkCover Queensland, or your employer if it is self-insured, pays without anyone having to prove fault:

• reasonable emergency, hospital, ophthalmologist and surgery costs
• weekly payments, based on your normal weekly earnings, while a doctor certifies you unable to work
• rehabilitation and return-to-work support, including retraining if you cannot go back to your trade
• a lump sum for permanent impairment once the injury has settled.

How loss of vision is rated

The lump sum depends on your degree of permanent impairment (DPI), a percentage of the whole person. It is assessed when your injury is stable and stationary: when your condition is well stabilised and unlikely to change substantially in the next year, with or without treatment.

Eye injuries are rated differently from most other injuries. Queensland’s Guidelines for the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (second edition) say that, on the advice of ophthalmologists, visual injuries are assessed under the American Medical Association’s guides, 4th edition (AMA4), rather than the 5th edition used for most other body parts. The guidelines also say:

• an ophthalmologist should assess all impairments of visual acuity (sharpness of vision), visual fields, eye movements and double vision
• vision is measured with your usual glasses or contact lenses, if you wore them before the injury
• if you only needed glasses after the injury, or your prescription changed, that difference is taken into account.

The lump sum is then calculated from the percentage using the ranges in the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Regulation 2025. If you think the rating is wrong, you have 20 business days from the notice of assessment to dispute it. You can ask for another independent doctor to assess you, or for a review by a medical assessment tribunal.

The 20% line: take the lump sum or sue?

• Under 20% DPI. You must choose between accepting the lump sum and keeping your right to sue your employer. You can defer the offer. If you do not respond within 20 business days, it is deferred automatically.
• 20% or more. You can accept the lump sum and still claim damages if your employer was at fault.

Your employer’s duties to protect your eyes

Under the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), a business that relies on personal protective equipment (PPE) must:

• provide the PPE to workers (section 44)
• make sure it is suitable for the work and the hazard, a suitable size and fit, and reasonably comfortable
• maintain, repair or replace it so it stays clean and in good working order
• ensure it is actually used or worn, so far as is reasonably practicable
• give workers information, training and instruction in how to use and wear it.

PPE is the last line of defence. Under sections 35 and 36 of the regulation, employers must first eliminate the risk if reasonably practicable and, if not, minimise it by substitution, isolation or engineering controls, then administrative controls, and only then rely on PPE for what remains. In practice that can mean guarding grinders and lathes, putting screens around welding bays, and keeping eyewash stations stocked and working. The right PPE also matters: glasses suitable for one task may not be suitable for grinding or chemical work. Queensland’s Welding Processes Code of Practice 2021 and Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021 give practical guidance on managing these risks.

Can you sue your employer?

Yes, if your employer was negligent. Common examples:

• no eye protection provided, or the wrong type for the job
• scratched, broken or poorly fitting glasses that were never replaced
• a grinder or machine without its guard
• no welding screens, so you were exposed to a co-worker’s arc
• chemicals decanted into unlabelled containers, or no eyewash station
• no training or supervision, or a site where eye protection was routinely ignored.

A damages claim can cover general damages for pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life, past and future lost earnings, lost superannuation and future treatment and aids. WorkCover payments already made are generally paid back out of your damages (section 270 of the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (Qld)).

What if I was not wearing safety glasses?

You can still make the WorkCover claim, because it does not depend on fault. In a damages claim, your share of the blame can reduce the amount. Section 305H of the WorkCover Act lists circumstances in which a court may find contributory negligence, including failing to use protective equipment that was provided, or misusing or interfering with it. Workers also have a duty to use PPE in line with the training and reasonable instructions they are given (section 46 of the WHS Regulation).

The circumstances matter. Glasses that fogged up, did not fit, were not suited to the task or were not available where you worked are treated very differently from deliberately refusing to wear them. An employer that knew workers were not wearing eye protection and did nothing may still be largely responsible.

When someone else is responsible

You may also be able to claim against:

• the manufacturer or supplier of a tool, disc or piece of eye protection that was defective
• a principal contractor or host business that controlled the site
• another contractor whose work caused the injury, such as a welder working without screens nearby.

These claims follow the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 (Qld). Part 1 of its notice of claim is due within nine months of the injury, or one month after you first instruct a lawyer and the other party is identified, if that is earlier. Keep the tool, disc or glasses if you can.

What decides how much a claim is worth

There is no standard figure for an eye injury. Reported settlements reflect one person’s facts. What matters most:

• how much vision was lost, in one eye or both, and whether it is permanent
• other effects, such as scarring, light sensitivity, double vision, pain or disfigurement
• your trade, and whether you can still drive, operate plant or hold your licence
• your age and earnings, and whether you can return to your job
• whether your employer, or someone else, was negligent
• any reduction for your own share of the blame.

Our claim estimator explains how Queensland damages are made up.

Time limits

WorkCover6 months Damages3 years

WorkCover claim. Lodge within six months after your entitlement arises, usually the day a doctor first assesses the injury (section 131). WorkCover can accept a late claim for a mistake, absence from Queensland or other reasonable cause, but it does not have to.

Damages claim. Court proceedings must generally start within three years of the injury (Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld), section 11), and a notice of claim for damages has to be given first. See our guide to time limits for workers’ compensation claims.

What to do after an eye injury at work

1. Step 1 Get first aid and medical help. Healthdirect advises going to the nearest emergency department, or calling triple zero (000) for an ambulance, if a chemical gets in the eye or something pierces the eye. For a chemical, flush the eye with cool water for 20 minutes while you wait, keeping the eye open and stopping the chemical washing into the other eye. Do not try to remove an object stuck in the eye.
2. Step 2 See a doctor even if the eye feels better. Welding flash and small fragments can cause damage that is not obvious at first.
3. Step 3 Report the injury to your employer and make sure it is recorded.
4. Step 4 Keep the eye protection you were wearing, and photograph the tool, guard and work area if you or a co-worker can safely do so.
5. Step 5 Lodge your WorkCover claim with a work capacity certificate from your doctor.
6. Step 6 Get legal advice before you accept any lump sum offer.

See also our guide to your first 72 hours after a work injury.