Can my boss in South Portland fire my teen for reporting a work injury?

Q: Can my boss in South Portland fire my teen for reporting a work injury?

Your employer is hoping you never find out this: in Maine, a work injury claim does not depend on immigration status, and retaliating for reporting an injury is illegal. In the next 24 hours: Get your teen medical care and tell the employer about the injury in writing today. In Maine, an injured worker should give notice within 30 days. A text or email is fine if it clearly says when, where, and how the injury happened. Save photos, names of witnesses, and any schedule showing the shift. If the boss starts talking about ICE, "papers," or says hours will disappear if a claim is filed, save that too. Those threats matter. In the next week: Ask whether the employer has reported the injury to the Maine Workers' Compensation Board. In Maine, employers generally must file a First Report of Occupational Injury or Disease within 7 days if the injury causes a day's lost work or needs medical treatment beyond basic first aid. If they refuse, your teen can still contact the Maine Workers' Compensation Board directly. If your teen is under 18 and was doing work that may violate Maine child labor rules, also contact the Maine Department of Labor. That does not cancel workers' comp rights. In the next month: Watch for retaliation: firing, fewer shifts, worse assignments, or being pushed out. Maine's Workers' Compensation Act bars discrimination for asserting a claim, and that can become a separate issue from the injury itself. Keep a simple timeline of every cut in hours, threat, or write-up. Also track deadlines. A formal Maine workers' comp claim usually must be pursued within 2 years of the injury. If this happened around South Portland road work, lane shifts, or heavy equipment near traffic, keep any police report or incident report too. Details disappear fast in construction season; they rarely improve with age.

Question

Accepted Answer

Your employer is hoping you never find out this: in Maine, a work injury claim does not depend on immigration status, and retaliating for reporting an injury is illegal.

In the next 24 hours: Get your teen medical care and tell the employer about the injury in writing today. In Maine, an injured worker should give notice within 30 days. A text or email is fine if it clearly says when, where, and how the injury happened. Save photos, names of witnesses, and any schedule showing the shift.

If the boss starts talking about ICE, "papers," or says hours will disappear if a claim is filed, save that too. Those threats matter.

In the next week: Ask whether the employer has reported the injury to the Maine Workers' Compensation Board. In Maine, employers generally must file a First Report of Occupational Injury or Disease within 7 days if the injury causes a day's lost work or needs medical treatment beyond basic first aid.

If they refuse, your teen can still contact the Maine Workers' Compensation Board directly. If your teen is under 18 and was doing work that may violate Maine child labor rules, also contact the Maine Department of Labor. That does not cancel workers' comp rights.

In the next month: Watch for retaliation: firing, fewer shifts, worse assignments, or being pushed out. Maine's Workers' Compensation Act bars discrimination for asserting a claim, and that can become a separate issue from the injury itself. Keep a simple timeline of every cut in hours, threat, or write-up.

Also track deadlines. A formal Maine workers' comp claim usually must be pursued within 2 years of the injury. If this happened around South Portland road work, lane shifts, or heavy equipment near traffic, keep any police report or incident report too. Details disappear fast in construction season; they rarely improve with age.