Psychological injury at work · Queensland
Psychological injury at work claims in Queensland — for workers whose mental health injury was caused or aggravated by their work or workplace.
Psychological injury at work claims in Queensland sit inside the Workers Compensation and Rehabilitation Act (WCRA). Statutory benefits begin under WorkCover. Where an employer breach can be made out, a separate common-law action is assessed in parallel.
- No-obligation first consultation
- No win, no fee*
- We set out our costs in writing at the start.
Your time limits
Queensland law- 6 monthsLodge your WorkCover application
- 20 business daysWorkCover decides
- 3 yearsStart court proceedings for damages
Two claims, one team
WorkCover supports your recovery. We investigate any damages claim early.
Accepted statutory claims pay benefits during recovery. We investigate any employer or third-party negligence claim alongside them.
Statutory
WorkCover claim
No fault to prove.
- Weekly payments while you can’t work
- Medical, hospital and rehabilitation costs
- A lump sum if you’re left with a permanent impairment
Lodge within 6 months. The insurer aims to decide within 20 business days.
Common law
Damages claim
Negligence has to be shown.
- Pain and suffering, on Queensland’s injury scale
- Past and future lost earnings and super
- Care, future treatment and out-of-pocket costs
Notice of Claim for Damages, a compulsory conference, and court within 3 years if needed.
The Notice of Assessment
The Notice of Assessment is where the claims can split.
Don’t sign a lump sum offer before advice.
Once your injury stabilises, WorkCover assesses your permanent impairment and may offer a lump sum. What you can do next depends on the rating.
- Under 20%Taking the lump sum ends your right to claim damages against your employer. The choice can’t be undone.
- 20% or moreYou can take the lump sum and still claim damages.
- 20 business daysTo dispute the impairment rating if you think it’s wrong.
How it happened
Most psychological injury at work claims in Queensland trace to four scenarios.
You will probably recognise yours below. Each can open both a WorkCover claim and a common-law action, because an employer who creates or tolerates conditions that injure a worker psychologically has usually breached its duty of care — and the resulting condition is a compensable injury under s 32 of the WCRA.
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Workplace bullying or harassment broke you down.
A manager who belittled you, a team that excluded you, repeated demeaning conduct that HR was told about and did nothing. The employer had a policy obligation and a common-law duty to intervene, and they did not. The resulting anxiety, depression or PTSD is a compensable injury under the WCRA, and the employer inaction is the negligence that opens the common-law claim.
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A traumatic incident left you unable to function.
You witnessed a serious accident, a fatality, or an assault at work. The employer knew this type of event was a foreseeable risk and did not provide adequate critical incident support or psychological first aid. The PTSD or acute stress disorder that followed is compensable, and the employer failure to plan for it opens a common-law claim.
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An excessive or unmanaged workload destroyed your health.
Chronic overwork, unrealistic KPIs, being the only one who could do the job. You told someone. You showed the signs. The employer failed to monitor workload, redistribute tasks, or provide support, even when the risk was obvious. Burnout that meets the diagnostic threshold is a compensable psychiatric injury under the WCRA.
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A physical injury caused you a serious psychological sequela.
Your physical injury healed, but the anxiety, the chronic pain disorder, the sleep disruption, and the depression did not. Psychological conditions flowing from a primary physical injury are compensable as part of the same claim, and they affect every head of loss in your common-law damages. We quantify both.
Straight after the injury
Four things to do straight away.
Report it
Tell your employer, and make sure it’s written in the register of injuries.
See a doctor
Ask for a work capacity certificate. You need one to lodge your WorkCover claim.
Lodge within 6 months
Your WorkCover application, from when your entitlement arises.
Keep records
Photos of the site and injury, witness names, pay slips and receipts.
Time limits
Five time limits that decide what you can claim.
Miss the first one and the WorkCover claim can be refused. Miss the last and the damages claim is gone.
- 6 monthsLodge your WorkCover applicationWithin 6 months after your entitlement to compensation arises, usually when a doctor first assesses the injury.
- 20 business daysWorkCover decidesThe insurer aims to decide your application within this period after it is lodged.
- 3 monthsReview a rejected claimApply to the Workers’ Compensation Regulator for a review of the decision.
- 20 business daysDispute your impairment ratingAfter your Notice of Assessment arrives, if you think the rating is wrong.
- 3 yearsStart court proceedings for damagesFrom the date of the injury, after the pre-court steps. Start early: those steps take time.
What you can claim
Two claims cover different losses.
What WorkCover pays
- Weekly payments while you can’t work
- Medical, hospital and pharmacy costs
- Rehabilitation and return-to-work support
- Travel for treatment
- A lump sum for permanent impairment
- Death benefits for dependants
What a damages claim covers
- Pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life
- Past and future loss of earnings
- Lost superannuation
- Paid care and assistance
- Future treatment and out-of-pocket costs
- Interest on past losses
Statutory limits apply to damages, and WorkCover benefits already paid are refunded from them.
How we run your claims
Five steps. Both claims. One team.
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Step 1
No-obligation first consultation
We check whether one or both claims apply, and what each is likely to cover. -
Step 2
WorkCover application
Lodged with your medical certificate, well inside the 6 months. -
Step 3
Damages case built early
Site evidence, witnesses, engineering and medical reports, while WorkCover runs. -
Step 4
Notice of Assessment
We compare the lump sum with your damages claim before you choose. -
Step 5
Conference, then court if needed
Many claims resolve at the compulsory conference. If not, court proceedings start within the 3 years.
Costs
What it costs you.
No win, no fee* on damages claims
If your damages claim doesn’t succeed, you pay no professional fees for our work. You may still have to pay outlays, such as report and court fees, if your costs agreement says so. If a court case is lost or withdrawn, or you don’t do better than an offer the other side made, you may have to pay the other side’s legal costs. We explain this in writing before you sign.
No-obligation first consultation
You decide whether to go ahead once you know your options and the likely costs.
Everything in writing
Fees and outlays for each claim are set out in a costs agreement before we start.
Capped at 50%
Our professional fees are capped at 50% of what you recover, after refunds and outlays (Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) s 347).
Questions
Straight answers to the questions you have right now.
You must lodge within 6 months of the injury or the date you first became aware that your condition was work-related. There is discretion to extend in some circumstances, but you should act immediately.
Yes, if the condition is diagnosed by a medical practitioner as a recognised psychiatric or psychological disorder and employment was a significant contributing factor. Everyday stress that does not reach diagnostic threshold is not compensable, but genuine anxiety disorders, depression and PTSD are.
WorkCover will notify your employer that a claim has been lodged. Your employer cannot take adverse action against you for making a workers compensation claim. That is prohibited conduct under the WCRA and attracts penalties.
No. There is no fixed impairment percentage you must reach to bring a common-law claim for a psychological injury. Once you have a Notice of Assessment you can pursue common-law damages. The 20% figure matters differently: if your assessed degree of permanent impairment is below 20%, you must elect between accepting the statutory lump-sum offer or pursuing common-law damages — you cannot keep both. At 20% or more you can accept the lump sum and still pursue damages. Get advice before the Notice of Assessment issues so you understand how the election affects your case.
The statutory claim can run for months to years while you are in treatment. The common-law component typically resolves at compulsory conference 12 to 24 months after election. Every case is different. We will give you a realistic timeline once we have reviewed your file.
It can, but only in limited circumstances. Under s 32(5) of the WCRA, a psychiatric or psychological injury is excluded if it arises out of, or in the course of, reasonable management action taken in a reasonable way — for example, genuine and fair performance management, a lawful transfer, or reasonable discipline. The exclusion only applies where the action was both reasonable in itself and carried out reasonably. Bullying, harassment, unfair process, or heavy-handed conduct is not reasonable management action, and injuries caused by it remain compensable. We assess whether what happened to you truly meets this exclusion.
Guides that go further.
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Guide
PTSD Workers’ Compensation in Queensland: First Responders, Nurses and Emergency Workers
PTSD workers compensation for Queensland first responders: the PTSD presumption, who it covers, what WorkCover pays, time limits and what to do if refused.
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Psychological injury
Mental Health Claims in the Workplace: Legal Pathways for Psychological Injuries
How a psychological injury from work is claimed in Queensland, and the medical evidence it needs.
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Bullying
Workplace Bullying Made Me Sick: How to Claim for Psychological Injury
When bullying becomes a compensable psychological injury, what has to be shown, and the reasonable management action defence.
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Time limits
Time Limits for Workers’ Compensation Claims in Queensland
Six months to lodge a WorkCover claim, three years for common law damages, and the exceptions that can extend them.
Hurt at work?
Talk to a lawyer before you sign anything WorkCover sends you. There’s no obligation to go ahead.
General information only, not legal advice about your situation. No win, no fee* applies to damages claims: if the claim doesn’t succeed, you pay no professional fees; whether outlays are payable depends on your costs agreement. If a court case is lost or withdrawn, or you don’t do better than an offer the other side made, you may have to pay the other side’s legal costs.