Louisiana — Workplace Safety

Louisiana does not operate an OSHA-approved state plan. Private sector employers and workers are subject to federal OSHA enforcement administered through the agency's Baton Rouge area office. State and local government workers are not covered by federal OSHA and have no equivalent state workplace safety law protecting them.

Source: OSHA State Plans

Louisiana requires employers to secure workers' compensation coverage for employees. The Louisiana Workers' Compensation Law applies to employees in the service of the state, political subdivisions, incorporated public boards, and private employers under appointment or contract of hire. Coverage extends to full-time, part-time, seasonal, temporary, and minor employees.

Compliance methods

Employers may satisfy the coverage requirement by purchasing a policy from a private insurer authorized to sell workers' compensation insurance in Louisiana, applying to become an approved self-insured employer, or obtaining membership in an approved group self-insurance fund.

The Louisiana Workers' Compensation Corporation is a private, nonprofit corporation created by statute to operate as a domestic mutual insurer providing workers' compensation insurance and a residual market for Louisiana employers. The corporation is domiciled in East Baton Rouge Parish and is authorized to provide state workers' compensation insurance coverage, United States Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act coverage, and Jones Act coverage. It is not a state agency.

Exemptions

Louisiana law provides exemptions from workers' compensation coverage for:

• Uncompensated officers and uncompensated members of boards of directors of certain nonprofit organizations (La. R.S. 23:1046)
• Real estate salespersons who meet the criteria specified in La. R.S. 23:1047

Independent contractor classification

La. R.S. 23:1021(7) defines "independent contractor" to mean "any person who renders service, other than manual labor, for a specified recompense for a specified result either as a unit or as a whole, under the control of the principal as to the results of the work only, and not as to the means by which such result is accomplished." The statute expressly excludes independent contractors from coverage "unless a substantial part of the work time as an independent contractor is spent in manual labor by him in carrying out the terms of the contract, in which case the independent contractor is expressly covered by the provisions of this Chapter."

Thus, independent contractors who spend a substantial part of their work time performing manual labor are treated as employees for workers' compensation purposes and are entitled to coverage.

Owner operator exception

La. R.S. 23:1021(10) defines "owner operator" to mean a person who provides trucking transportation services under written contract to a common carrier, contract carrier, or exempt hauler, which services include the lease of equipment or a driver to the carrier or hauler. An owner operator and the drivers provided by an owner operator are not employees of the carrier or hauler for purposes of the workers' compensation statute if the owner operator has entered into a written agreement with the carrier or hauler that evidences a relationship in which the owner operator identifies itself as an independent contractor.

Penalties and enforcement

Unable to confirm specific penalty amounts for failure to secure coverage as of 2026-05-28.

Employers are required to report workplace injuries. Unable to confirm specific reporting deadlines and procedures as of 2026-05-28.

Source: La. R.S. 23:1021 (Definitions) Source: La. R.S. 23:1046 (Nonprofit officers and directors exemption) Source: La. R.S. 23:1047 (Real estate salesmen exemption) Source: La. R.S. 23:1310.3 (Louisiana Workers' Compensation Corporation)

Louisiana law requires employers with more than 15 employees to maintain a written operational safety plan. This requirement is set out in La. R.S. 23:1291(B)(4) and clarified in Louisiana Administrative Code Title 40, Part I, § 901 and § 903.

Who must comply: Any employer with over 15 employees—whether self-insured or insured by a carrier—must maintain a written operational safety plan. The plan must be available for inspection by the Director of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration upon request.

Required components: The operational safety plan, under LAC 40:I.903, must outline measures designed to reduce workplace accidents and occupational disease, including compliance with applicable local, state, and federal safety or industry standards. The employer may create the plan internally or use external safety professionals. Employers must identify one of two safety plan classes as further defined in LAC 40:I.907 (Class A for premium rates over $5 per $100 payroll in any highest class, Class B for $5 or less). Details on the required written elements are further outlined in § 907, though the regulation does not enumerate a precise checklist for all industries.

Confidentiality: The plan is privileged and confidential under La. R.S. 23:1293 and is only subject to subpoena if the employer certifies under oath that the provided plan is a true duplicate of what was submitted to the Director.

Penalties for non-compliance: While La. R.S. 23:1291(B)(13) gives the Director the authority to impose reasonable fines for violation of any rule under this chapter, there is no explicit penalty amount stated within § 23:1291(B)(4) itself. Other sections authorize penalties up to $500 per offense for violations of any promulgated rule, which likely covers failure to maintain or produce a safety plan when requested, but there is no uniquely defined penalty for the operational safety plan provision.

Source: La. R.S. 23:1291 Source: LAC 40:I.903 Source: LAC 40:I.901 Source: La. R.S. 23:1293

Which employers must file: Louisiana employers with eleven (11) or more employees at any one time during the preceding calendar year must file Form LDOL-WC-1017A (Employer’s Report of Occupational Injury or Illness Quarterly Summary) with the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration—but only for quarters in which at least one recordable occupational injury or illness occurred (LAC 40:I.105(A)). Exemptions apply for employers in agriculture, domestic service, and certain governmental entities (see the rule text for industry definitions and coverage).

Filing deadlines: The form is due quarterly: by the last day of the month after the close of each calendar quarter (i.e., April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31 for the previous quarter).

Required information: The report must include the following, as specified in LAC 40:I.105(B):

• Total number of recordable occupational injuries and illnesses for the quarter;
• Number of deaths;
• Number of lost time cases;
• Number of cases without lost time.

The form itself (LDOL-WC-1017A) is prescribed by the Director of the Office of Workers' Compensation Administration and is available from the Louisiana Workforce Commission.

Penalties and enforcement: The regulation does not specify a direct penalty for failure to file the quarterly report. However, the Director may require employers to submit further information or records relating to injuries and illnesses (LAC 40:I.105(C)).

Source: LAC 40:I.105