Yes, under Georgia law. Georgia is an employment at will state. In general, unless you have an employment contract or are the victim of discrimination, you can be fired for any reason. The Georgia legislature rejected a bill preventing such firing for making a claim many years ago.

Your termination can be significant, however. If you are on regular duty work with no restrictions and you are fired, then you will not be entitled to further temporary total benefits unless a doctor later says that you had some restrictions or that you could not work.

On the other hand, if you have some restrictions when you are fired, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. If you have been fired for reasons related to your workers’ compensation claim, your temporary total benefits should start immediately and you need not seek employment. If it is not apparent that you were fired for making the claim, you will probably need to look for work and prove that the reason that you could not find work was on account of your workers’ compensation claim and the lingering effects of your injury. If you can prove this, then you would be entitled to temporary total benefits.

While you have no claim under Georgia law for being terminated, you may have rights under the  Americans with Disabilities Act, Family Medical Leave Act or other federal laws.