In any employment relationship, disputes between employees and their employers are bound at arise at some point. That is why labour laws exist. Labour laws provide a legal framework within which workplaces must operate. These laws prescribe how certain employment-related matters must be handled. 

Are you an Australian worker? Have you suffered an injury at the workplace and want to know if you qualify for workers' compensation? Here are the requirements you will need to meet in order to be considered eligible for this employee health and safety benefit.

You must be a legally recognised employee.

Workers' compensation laws are imposed by state and territory governments and are executed by employers. Compliance with these laws is required to legitimise contractual relationships between workers and their employers. 

To be considered eligible for worker compensation, your status as an employee must be legally recognised. To fulfill this requirement, you simply need to prove that you have been supplying labour services in exchange for wages or a salary. 

Your injury must be work related.

Injury, here, means bodily harm or illness that you may catch as a result of the work that you do. This requirement is based on the premise that workers execute the instructions of their employers and must therefore be compensated in the event that they get injured while performing their work. 

Seeing a qualified physician or doctor to check the type and extent of injury you have sustained is vital to ascertaining that the injury is directly related to your line of work. You can see your employer-recommended physician or your own trusted physician. They will provide you with medical reports to corroborate your claim.  

You must have lost income. 

Workers' compensation is generally meant to compensate workers for the income they may have lost because of hours spent away from work nursing or recovering from injury—work-related injury, mark you. It may also include personal funds spent on treatment. 

This means that if you're unable to report to your work station because you accidentally hurt yourself while performing a household chore, for example, your employer will not be required to pay you for the time you missed work.

Every worker's situation is unique and different, of course. So, it is important to consult a workers' compensation lawyer to learn more about your specific case. They will listen to you and inform you whether or not you're eligible for compensation.