The 1st District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee has upheld alower court's ruling that an illegal alien working in Florida isentitled to workers' compensation when injured on the job.

Luis Aragon, who illegally crossed the border into the U.S. 11years ago when he was 16, was working at HDV Construction Systems,Inc. in Jacksonville when he fell 30 feet and injured his foot andarm in September 2007.

When he was awarded permanent total disability (PTD) benefitsfrom the Judge of Compensation Claims, HDV and its insurer,Gallagher Bassett Services, Inc., resisted, saying that becauseAragon was illegally working he was not entitled to PTD.

The court rejected that argument, ruling that the "that theemployer knew or should have known that claimant, an illegalimmigrant from Mexico, was without the legal right to work" in theU.S. and "the employer hired and continued to unlawfully employclaimant until he was injured in a significant workplace accident."Aragon did not have a Social Security number or a green card.

The opinion from the appeal court says, "Although there is noshortage of debate that can be had on the issue of illegal laborand its effect on our state, there is no dispute that the FloridaLegislature has expressed an unyielding, textual intent thataliens, including those who are illegal and unlawfully employed, becovered and compensated under the Florida Workers' CompensationLaw."

The three-judge panel further notes that a company that"knowingly employs unlawful labor should not be able to shirk thecost of the injuries it creates — and in turn, shift the cost ofthe damages that it has knowingly created on the taxpayingpublic.''

A bill requiring Florida employers to use the federal E-verifysystem to help ensure a person's eligibility to work in the U.S.never made it past the House in the recent 2011 legislativesession.