March 14, 2025
Partner, Joe Oppenheim, provided commentary to Canadian HR Reporter on a decision by the Appeals Commission for Alberta Workers’ Compensation, which denied a worker’s claim that several instances of bullying and harassment had caused her “severe depression, anxiety and anger due to being frequently mistreated and bullied while on the job.” A registered psychologist diagnosed her with generalized anxiety disorder and a major depressive disorder, which the employee unsuccessfully disputed in this appeal.
“In any claim that a worker makes for benefits under the Workers’ Compensation Program, the worker has to actually bring forth objective evidence to demonstrate, or to prove to the Workers’ Compensation Board that something happened at work that caused her to be disabled.”
Workplace Psychological Injury and WCB’s ‘but for’ Test
A key factor in psychological injury claims is establishing the link between the workplace incident and the diagnosed condition. The “but for” test is a legal standard used by WCB to determine if the worker’s injury would have happened without the workplace event.
“That’s language borrowed from old tort law, personal injury law, negligence law, which determines causation by asking the question: ‘But for the event, would the person have the injury complained of?”
“The board will not agree to compensate a worker simply because they are experiencing anxiety or depression, or their anxiety or depression gets exacerbated because of something that happened at work. The thing that happened at work has to be objectively an accident.”
Managing Psychological Injury Claims Effectively
Joe reminds employers that once a claim is denied, the worker has no further legal options under Alberta law: “Interestingly enough, there’s a section in the Workers’ Compensation Act that says, if you are injured at work, your only recourse is WCB.” “Even if WCB denies your claim, you can’t go out and sue separately.”
Key Takeaways for Employers:
- Due diligence is essential: proper documentation and timely investigations can make or break a WCB case.
- Take a proactive approach in managing workplace stress incidents and ensuring adherence to WCB policies.
- The policy application requires that there must be a fear that is reasonably and objectively assessed. Even if an employee feels harassed or bullied, WCB will assess objectively whether the workplace interactions were severe enough to qualify for compensation under the policy.
If you have any questions about bullying and harassment in the workplace, human rights complaints, workplace investigations, or any other employment and labour related issues, reach out to our experienced employment lawyers.
Read the full article on Canadian HR Reporter.
Joseph Oppenheim
Partner
T: 403.705.3661
E: [email protected]
For media inquiries please contact Alejandra Valencia at [email protected]