WorkCover Stress Claims – Psychological Injury Lawyers

Foyle Legal psychological injury lawyers represent clients in Workcover stress claims, PTSD claims, motor vehicle stress claims, TPD claim for mental health, and dependency claims due to work-related fatalities.

Workcover Stress Claims

For an accepted Workcover stress claim and psychological injury claims, it should be considered whether the injured person will also have common law benefits as well as workers compensation benefits. Your legibility of common law workers compensation claim depends on WPI rating and whether the negligence of others causes your psychological injury at work.

• If your WPI is less than 15%: you may be entitled to a no-fault workers compensation claim for stress and anxiety.
• If your WPI is great than 15% and you can prove that your employer is negligent in causing your psychological injury at work: you may be entitled to common law claim damages for psychological injury at work.

For Workcover stress claims, workers are entitled to Workcover stress leave while receiving workers compensation payments though some exceptions do apply.

TPD claim for Mental Health

Separate to a Workers Compensation Stress claim, If your work-related mental injury has affected your mental health so severely to the extent of total and permanent disability. You may be entitled to TPD claims. This also applies in a stress injury is not work related.

Work-Related Suicide

If the work stress has left to suicide, dependents of the deceased worker may be entitled to fatal injury dependency claim. These claims can be challenging so you should seek legal advice.

Insurers frequently dispute or reject psychological injury claims on two main grounds: causation and exclusions. First, they may argue there’s insufficient evidence that your psychological condition was caused by employment to the required standard (for diseases, employment must contribute to a significant degree).

Second, many disputes turn on the reasonable administrative action exclusion. A psychological or psychiatric disorder (including physiological effects on the nervous system) is not an injury from employment if it results wholly or predominantly from reasonable administrative action by the employer—such as performance appraisal, suspension, discipline, demotion, dismissal, retrenchment, or decisions about promotion, transfer or other benefits—or from the worker’s expectation of that action. The exclusion does not apply if the administrative action was unreasonable and harsh.

To improve your prospects, report the injury promptly, see your GP or psychologist early, and build objective evidence: a clear timeline of events, contemporaneous medical notes, incident reports, emails, performance documents, and any witness statements. This helps prove work causation and address insurer reliance on the exclusion where management action was unreasonable.

If you make a workers’ compensation claim for a psychological injury and an approved permanent impairment assessor (usually a psychiatrist) assesses your Whole Person Impairment (WPI) at 15% or more, you may choose to pursue common law damages against your employer based on negligence. To do that, you must lodge a formal election in the approved form with the Director, supported by the WPI assessment, and have the election registered. You can’t start court proceedings against the employer until those steps are completed.

Under the old legislation there was a termination day tied to one year from lodging your comp claim. There is no longer a “termination day”.

Common law actions are generally subject to the 3-year limitation period for personal injury. Practically, this means arranging the WPI assessment and making (and registering) your election in time to commence proceedings within that limitation window.

Psychological common law claims are often complex. Disputes commonly involve pre-existing conditions, the circumstances giving rise to the injury, and quantifying damages (pain and suffering, treatment needs, and economic loss). Whole person impairment assessments are typically very different to each other.  Getting early advice and the right medical evidence is critical to meeting the thresholds and timelines.

It is common to feel confused and do not know what to say to the doctor to get stress leave by the time your work-related stress has escalated to the need of stress leave, and the worker often has lots of built-up emotions, thoughts, feelings, and anxiety.

Doctors can help to treat your mental stress, anxiety, or depression. It is best if you are honest and upfront to your doctor when talking about your stress and psychological injury and make sure all the circumstances arising from your work related stress are documented. Doctors are there to help you to get better. When talking to the doctor, please be sure to mention:

• What happened at work
• How did it impact your mental health
• As a result of the stress at work, what tasks or duties that you are no longer to do
• If you have tried to self-medicate, please mention what you have tried and the outcome

If you feel tired, frustrated, angry, stressed, on the verge of a nervous breakdown while telling your story, do not hide it from your doctor. They are trained to help you. Based on your consultation, your doctor will then recommend a suitable treatment, stress leave from work, or other further actions.

Please note that If you decided to make a workers compensation claim for stress, your discussion with the doctor could be vital evidence to link your psychological injury to your employment and the degree of incapacity that the mental injury has caused you. Please check out this blog on how to best work with doctors for medical evidence.

How much compensation for psychological damage? Compensation payouts for psychological injury can vary primarily based on the evidence presented to support your future loss of earnings (need for weekly payments of compensation) and future needs. Timing of settling your psychological injury at work is also essential. Workers compensation insurers often make low offers at the very early stage to settle workers compensation psychological injury claims. If you have made a Workcover stress claim, please be sure that you do not settle your stress claim too early.

How much compensation for psychological damage? Compensation payouts for psychological injury can vary primarily based on the evidence presented to support your future loss of earnings (need for weekly payments of compensation) and future needs. Timing of settling your psychological injury at work is also essential. Workers’ compensation insurers often make low offers at the very early stage to settle workers’ compensation psychological injury claims. If you have made a Workcover stress claim, please be sure that you do not settle your stress claim too early.

If you have a statutory workers compensation claim in Western Australia, with no common law claim, you cannot claim damages for pain and suffering but you can claim permanent impairment benefits, income compensation, medical expenses, rehabilitation expenses and travel expenses. The maximum payment for income compensation and permanent impairment in the 2025 – 2026 year is $273,220.

If your WPI is between 15% to 25%, and you elect to pursue common law damages and commence legal proceedings you can claim pain and suffering. The maximum damages amount for less than 25% impairment for 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 is $573,766.

If you have an accepted workplace fatal injury claim for a workplace death, then the Dependant Lump Sum Entitlement in the 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2025 period is $683,050.

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Technically, stress leave is not a category of leave by itself but in Australia, there is an entitlement to 10 days sick leave (or pro-rata amount). If your workplace stress has an impact on your ability to perform work duties and caused a psychological injury to you, and you may qualify for Workcover stress leave entitlements. If you have an accepted Workcover stress claim, your Workcover stress leaves entitlement is the same as your workers comp entitlement.

If you found yourself having to take stress leave from work frequently and your mental condition has affected your capacity to do work, it is essential to talk to your doctor to evaluate if your workplace stress has resulted in psychological injury at work.

If you have made a claim for a work-related mental health claim, contact one of our Perth based workplace injury lawyers for your obligation-free claim review.

Yes. Unless you are applying for Workcover sick leave. Workcover sick leave is a workers compensation stress claim.

For work-caused “stress” (or any work injury), workers’ compensation usually provides broader and longer-lasting support than taking “stress leave.” Under WA’s scheme you can receive weekly income payments (calculated from your pre-injury earnings and subject to weekly caps) and those payments can continue until you reach the Income Compensation General Limit. By law, that limit equals the General Maximum Amount set each financial year. For 1 July 2025 – 30 June 2026, the published figure is $273,220.

While you’re on income compensation, you cannot use sick/personal leave for the same absence, but you keep accruing annual, long-service and sick leave entitlements as if you were working. Workers’ compensation can also cover reasonable medical and rehabilitation expenses.

By contrast, “stress leave” under ordinary employment entitlements is limited: personal (sick) leave is finite and stops when it’s used up, and compassionate leave is only a few days per occasion. These entitlements are significantly less generous than the workers’ compensation pathway when your condition is work-related. If your symptoms may be linked to work, speak to us first so we can help you access the stronger workers’ compensation benefits and preserve your leave.

Here’s how “stress leave” works in WA (i.e., using your paid personal/sick leave under your employment entitlements). If you’re unwell, see your GP and obtain a medical certificate stating you’re unfit for work (dates included). Notify your employer as soon as possible—follow your workplace policy or agreement—and submit your certificate through the usual HR/leave system. Keep copies of everything. If you need more time off, keep seeing your GP and provide updated certificates. You may also be able to use compassionate leave if there’s a bereavement or life-threatening illness in your immediate family/household, and you can ask about any Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

If your condition was caused (or significantly contributed to) by work and you’re incapacitated, personal/compassionate leave is often not enough—ten days of paid personal leave per year runs out quickly, and unpaid leave means lost income. That’s where workers’ compensation can help: when a psychological injury is work-related, you may be entitled to income compensation payments (which can continue far beyond your leave balance and up to the scheme limits), plus reasonable medical, psychology/psychiatry, medication, and rehabilitation costs. You also keep accruing certain leave while on compensation, and there are structured return-to-work supports.

If you suspect your stress is work-related, don’t wait until your leave is exhausted. See your GP, then lodge a Workers’ Compensation Claim Form with a First Certificate of Capacity and give them to your employer. This preserves your rights to income support and treatment funding, and can significantly reduce the financial pressure compared with relying on personal leave alone. Foyle Legal can guide you through both paths and help you access the stronger workers’ comp benefits if you’re eligible.

Short answer: sometimes. “Stress leave” isn’t a separate legal category—it’s usually personal (sick) leave. If you’re a full-time employee, you accrue 10 paid days per year (pro-rated for part-time). You’re paid at your base rate for your ordinary hours when you take it and provide the required medical evidence. If you’ve run out of paid personal leave—or you’re a casual—any further time off is unpaid unless your employer agrees otherwise. Compassionate leave is separate (generally 2 paid days per occasion for full-/part-time; unpaid for casuals).

If your stress is work-related and your workers’ compensation claim is accepted, income payments are made by the workers’ comp insurer under the scheme (not by your employer as sick leave). You generally can’t use paid personal leave at the same time as workers’ comp income payments. For many people with work-caused psychological injury, workers’ comp provides longer and broader support than personal leave alone.

Statewide. We help Perth metro and regional WA – in person or remotely – for ICWA motor accidents, WorkCover WA claims and public liability. Book a free consult.

WA Locations we regularly serve:

• Perth Metro (within ~100km of CBD; incl. Midland, Malaga)
• Albany – Great Southern
• Broome – Kimberley
• Bunbury – South West
• Busselton – Capes Region
• Geraldton – Mid West
• Kalgoorlie-Boulder – Goldfields
• Karratha – Pilbara
• Northam – Wheatbelt
• Port Hedland – Pilbara

Personal injury claim focus areas:

• ICWA motor vehicle accident claims
• Workers’ compensation (WorkCover WA)
• Public liability claims
• Medical negligence
• Fatal injury (wrongful death)
• Criminal Injuries Compensation (victims of crime)
• Catastrophic injuries
• TPD & Insurance claims

→ See the common injuries we handle. Book a free consultation.