Skip to main content

South Carolina

    Region
    South Carolina
    Required to Report
    Yes
    State Office
    Department of Health and Environmental Control, Bureau of Disease Control regional offices
    Timeframe to Report Injury or Exposure
    One day
    Reporting Notes

    Reporting can be done by phone to the regional health office or via the web-based reporting system : https://aapco.org/south_carolina/

    WPS Enforcement
    Worker Protection Standard Enforcement Agency

    Clemson Division of Regulatory Services: http://www.clemson.edu/public/regulatory/index.html

    Coverage for Farmworkers
    Optional
    Limitations
    Employer may elect to be bound by workers' compensation law. S.C. Code Ann. § 42-1-380 (2013).
    Statute
    S.C. Code Ann. § 42-1-360 (2013)
    Coverage for Undocumented Workers
    Yes
    Case Law
    S.C. Code Ann. 1976 § 42-1-130 (2008) (definition of "employee" includes "aliens . . . whether lawfully or unlawfully employed"). Curiel v. Envtl. Mgmt. Servs. (MS), 655 S.E.2d 482 (S.C. 2007) (holding that Immigration Reform and Control Act, which prohibits the hiring of unauthorized aliens, does not preempt state law permitting illegal alien to recover workers compensation; the Act does not expressly preclude an illegal alien from being considered an employee for workers' compensation benefits, and allowing benefits for injured illegal alien workers does not conflict with the policy against hiring them).
    Benefits Available for Undocumented Workers
    This is somewhat unclear as Curiel decides that an undocumented worker can qualify for workers' compensation, but the discussion of what the worker qualifies for did not involve a discussion in light of the worker's undocumented status (so the issue of what benefits an undocumented worker can receive appears not to have been litigated). The case was remanded for a determination of what amount of permanent partial disability the undocumented worker should receive. Curiel v. Envtl. Mgmt. Servs. (MS), 655 S.E.2d 482, 484, 487 (S.C. 2007).
    Additional Information
    South Dakota has a long-standing policy to interpret workers compensation statute liberally. S.D. Medical Service, Inc. v. Minn. Mut. Fire & Cas. Co., 303 N.W. 2d 358, 361 (S.D. 1981).