Worker Cannot Sue For Workplace Injury - "Historic Trade-Off" Affirmed

Workers' rights to sue over workplace accidents are severly restricted by workers compensation schemes across the country. Statutes like the Workers Compensation Act of BC provide workers with access to an insurance scheme that does not depend on finding fault or the ability of the employer to pay for a workplace injury, illness or death. But in exchange, workers cannot sue the employer or other workers. That has been described as the "historic trade-off" and the Supreme Court of Canada recently re-affirmed the principle.

The case of Marine Services International v. Ryan Estate is mostly about the interplay of federal and provincial laws and a full analysis of that issue case can be found on our Canadian Appeals Monitor blog.