Federal employees do not file under Missouri workers’ compensation. Their claims fall under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA), which provides benefits when an employee is disabled or killed by an injury or disease “sustained while in the performance of duty.”

Coverage applies regardless of position or how long the employee has held it. Claims are administered by the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) and paid through the Employees’ Compensation Fund. Federal benefits include:

• Medical expenses for work-related injuries or occupational diseases.
• Compensation for lost wages while the employee cannot work.
• Vocational rehabilitation services for disabled employees.

It is a separate system with its own forms and deadlines. If you are a federal worker, the most important first step is confirming your claim is filed in the right system, because time lost in the wrong one does not come back.

Missouri state agencies, cities, counties, school districts, and other political subdivisions generally carry workers’ compensation coverage for their employees. If you work for one of them, your Missouri workers’ comp claim follows the same core rules as a private-sector claim: report the injury, treat with the authorized doctor, and receive benefits that may include medical care, lost wages, and compensation for permanent disability.

Every covered workplace is required to post workers’ compensation information, including how to file and who to contact. If the poster is missing, ask your employer, human resources, the legal department, or your union representative.

The same core rules also mean the same pressure points. The employer and its insurer or administrator choose the treating doctor, and a release with no restrictions can quietly close the door on future medical care.

A few occupations sit outside both Missouri and standard federal workers’ compensation, with federal statutes of their own:

• The Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) covers railroad employees and interstate transportation workers.
• The Jones Act covers seamen.
• The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act covers longshoremen and others in maritime work.

The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, the Death on the High Seas Act, and the Defense Base Act make additional provisions for employees on defense bases and certain public work projects outside the United States.

In 2025 alone, our firm spent over $700,000 on expert witnesses. Public employee cases are proven the same way they are won: physicians who connect the work incident to the injury, and preparation that treats every disputed claim as one that may need a judge.

Our firm handled roughly 1 in 4 of recent workers’ compensation trials at the St. Louis Division of Workers’ Compensation, out of hundreds of attorneys representing Missouri workers. Insurers know which firms will actually try a case, and it changes how they negotiate.

When the claims administrator knows a trial firm is on the file, refusals of care get reconsidered.

Are Missouri state and local government employees covered by workers’ comp?

Generally yes. State agencies, cities, counties, school districts, and other political subdivisions carry workers’ compensation coverage for their employees. An injured public employee follows the same core process as a private-sector worker, and the benefits may include medical care, lost wages, and compensation for permanent disability.

What if I am a federal employee injured on the job in Missouri?

Federal employees are covered under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act rather than Missouri law, and claims are administered by the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs. It is a separate system with its own forms, deadlines, and benefits, so confirming which system applies is the first step.

Who chooses my doctor if I work for a city, county, or state agency?

Under Missouri workers’ compensation, the employer and its insurer or administrator generally direct medical care, which means a public employer picks the treating doctor just as a private employer would. If you have been released while you are still in pain, a second opinion before you settle can change the picture.

Do public employee claims settle differently?

The same factors drive value: the medical evidence, your wage rate, permanent restrictions, and future medical needs. Public employers and their claims administrators respond to trial preparation the same way private insurers do. Every case is different; results depend on the facts.