Injured Working at Woolworths, Coles or Another Self-Insured Employer in Queensland

What is a self-insured employer?

Every Queensland employer must insure its workers against injury, either with a WorkCover Queensland policy or under a self-insurance licence (section 48 of the Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (Qld)). The Workers’ Compensation Regulator decides applications for self-insurance licences. To qualify, an employer must, among other things, generally employ more than 2,000 full-time workers in Queensland and show satisfactory safety performance, financial strength and in-house claims and rehabilitation resources.

A self-insurer pays its own claims. It is bound by the same Act as WorkCover. Its claims decisions follow the same rules and can be reviewed in the same way.

Which employers are self-insured in Queensland?

WorkSafe Queensland’s published list (last updated 12 July 2022) included these employers, among others. The list may have changed since then, so check with WorkSafe Queensland whether your employer is currently self-insured.

The list changes from time to time, and a company’s subsidiaries may be covered differently. Check the current list on the WorkSafe Queensland website, which also gives each self-insurer’s claims contact, or ask your manager or HR who your employer’s workers’ compensation insurer is.

Your entitlements are the same

If your claim is accepted, the self-insurer must pay the same statutory benefits WorkCover would:

• medical, hospital and rehabilitation costs
• weekly payments while a doctor certifies you unable to work
• return-to-work support, including suitable duties
• a lump sum for permanent impairment once your injury is stable and stationary.

The lump sum rules also apply in the same way. If your degree of permanent impairment is under 20%, accepting the lump sum ends your right to sue your employer. You can defer the offer, and it is deferred automatically if you do not respond within 20 business days.

How to lodge a claim with a self-insurer

You claim through your employer, not through WorkCover. In practice:

• report the injury to your manager as soon as possible and make sure it is recorded
• see your doctor and get a work capacity certificate
• ask your manager, HR or the workers’ compensation team for the claim form or online lodgement process, and lodge it with the certificate
• keep copies of everything you send and write down who you spoke to and when.

Some self-insurers use an outside claims management company to run claims for them. Either way, the decision is legally the self-insurer’s, and the same rules apply.

What the self-insurer must do

An insurer, including a self-insurer, must decide your application within 20 business days after it is made and tell you the decision. If it rejects the claim, it must give you written reasons. If it has not decided within 20 business days, it must tell you why and that you can apply for a review (section 134).

If your claim is rejected: review and appeal

If you disagree with a decision by a self-insurer, such as a rejected claim or stopped weekly payments, you can apply to the Workers’ Compensation Regulator for an independent review. Apply within three months of receiving the written decision. The Regulator reviews decisions of WorkCover and self-insurers in the same way.

If you disagree with the review decision, you can appeal to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission. The appeal must be filed within 20 business days of receiving notice of the review decision.

Suing a self-insured employer

If your injury was caused by your employer’s negligence, you can claim damages against a self-insured employer in the same way as any other employer. The process starts with a notice of claim for damages, which is given to the self-insurer (section 275).

Common examples of negligence in retail workplaces generally include:

• manual handling without enough staff, equipment or training, such as heavy cartons, pallets, trolleys and repetitive scanning
• spills and wet floors that are not cleaned up or signed
• unsafe storerooms, ladders and shelving
• failing to manage known risks of customer violence.

Damages can include pain and suffering, past and future lost earnings, lost super and future treatment costs. Compensation payments already made are generally paid back out of your damages (section 270).

Customer aggression and psychological injury

Abuse, threats and assaults by customers are a known risk in retail. WorkSafe Queensland treats work-related violence and aggression, including from customers, as a hazard employers must manage under the Managing the risk of psychosocial hazards at work Code of Practice 2022. Examples of controls include screens and barriers, electronic payments, and changed cash-handling procedures.

A psychological injury can be claimed, but employment must be a significant contributing factor, and injuries arising from reasonable management action taken in a reasonable way are excluded (section 32). See our guide to mental health claims in the workplace, and our guide to hospitality and retail worker injuries.

Can I be sacked while on workers’ compensation?

Section 232B of the WorkCover Act prohibits an employer from ending your employment solely or mainly because you are not fit for work because of your injury, within 12 months after the injury. Within that period you can also ask to return to your job once a doctor certifies you fit, and the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission can order your employer to take you back.

Most private-sector employers are covered by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). If you are dismissed, an unfair dismissal or general protections application to the Fair Work Commission must be made within 21 days of the dismissal taking effect. Queensland council employees generally apply to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission instead, which also has short time limits. Get advice quickly.

Time limits

Claim6 months Review3 months Damages3 years

Compensation claim. Lodge within six months after your entitlement arises, usually the day a doctor first assesses the injury (Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2003 (Qld), section 131). The same limit applies to self-insurers.

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

What to do if you are injured at a self-insured employer

1. Step 1 Get medical treatment and tell your doctor it happened at work.
2. Step 2 Report the injury to your manager and make sure an incident report is completed. Ask for a copy.
3. Step 3 Ask who handles workers’ compensation claims and lodge your claim with a work capacity certificate.
4. Step 4 Write down what happened, who saw it and any earlier complaints, and keep your rosters and payslips.
5. Step 5 If the claim is rejected or payments stop, apply for a review within three months.
6. Step 6 Get legal advice before you accept any lump sum or resign.