Farmworker Unit, LANC, ncfarcomp.htm

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Worker's Compensation

To learn more about workers Comp, visit the Industrial Commission of North Carolina's website.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, agriculture is one of the most dangerous occupations in the country, with large numbers of injuries relative to its employment. (1) Accidents with machinery, muscle/skeletal injuries from performing repetitive and difficult labor, illness from pesticide exposure and unsanitary housing conditions, and heat stress and stroke from the sun, are all common causes of injury and illness among farmworkers.

The agriculture industry has been excluded from federal and state worker's compensation laws that other industries are required to comply with. Under current North Carolina law, farms that employ fewer than 10 full-time, year-round employees are exempt from having to carry worker's compensation insurance. Therefore, most agricultural employers are exempt.

As a result, many farmworkers who are injured on the job do not receive proper medical care or receive only emergency treatment. Farmworkers rely upon government funded migrant health clinics to fill the gaps in the lack of health care for farmworkers. However, without worker's compensation insurance, farmworkers do not receive pay for lost wages or permanent physical damage.

However, a few farmers in North Carolina opt to cover their workers with insurance policies.

Additionally, employers who hire H2A workers are required by federal law to provide worker's compensation for employees. However, many workers in North Carolina on H2A visas are fearful of reporting accidents to their employer for fear of retaliation, and more often employers do not report accidents to the insurance company. Often, H2A employers fire workers who are injured in order to request a healthy "replacement" worker from the many Mexican nationals eager to work in the U.S.

The North Carolina Retaliatory Employment Discrimnation Act prohibits employers from retaliating against workers who seek worker's compensation benefits for job related injuries.Download our brochure,
Worker's Compensation for Service Providers English / Español

In North Carolina, all workplace injuries should be reported to the NC Industrial Commission as soon as possible to start processing a worker's compensation claim. To find out if an employer carries worker's compensation insurance you can go to the NC Industrial Commission’s website or call them at 1-800-688-8349.