North Dakota Violent Crime Victims Could Claim Workers’ Comp

A victim of a violent crime at work in North Dakota could be eligible for up to $15,000 in workers’ compensation benefits for mental stress.

The North Dakota Senate’s Industry, Business and Labor Committee is considering the proposal.

Normally the state Workforce Safety and Insurance agency doesn’t pay claims based on mental stress.

The bill is being introduced in response to a denied claim from a teller at a bank in Gilby in rural Grand Forks County that was robbed in May 2009. The teller’s hands were bound and she was thrown face down on the floor.

The teller was afraid to come back to work and said she suffered from a stress disorder from the robbery. But her workers’ compensation claim was denied.

The legislation is not retroactive.