Kevin Konecny, a foreman for a subcontractor, was injured at the Toyota Center construction project in Houston and received workers' compensation benefits. He then sued the general contractor (Hunt) and other subcontractors for negligence. The Texas Court of Appeals ruled that because Konecny received workers' compensation benefits through the owner-controlled insurance program (OCIP) that covered all subcontractors on the project, he could not sue the other contractors. The court found that workers' compensation was his exclusive remedy, blocking the negligence lawsuit entirely.
If you're covered under an owner-controlled insurance program (OCIP) that provides workers' compensation, your employees cannot sue other subcontractors on the same project for negligence—workers' comp is their only recovery option.
Require all subcontracts to include participation in any OCIP or group workers' compensation program. This protects you from negligence lawsuits by injured workers from other subs.