W R G Const. Co. v. Hoebel

1 Under the provisions of H.B. No. 1353, Ch. 217, O.S.L. 1976, p. 337, 85 O.S.Supp. 1976 ?? 5 -7 an employee refused to be retained or rehired because he/she "has in good faith filed a [compensation] claim" may seek, inter alia, "reasonable damages" resulting from the employers wrongful discharge. The narrow issue presented in this proceeding is whether the right to damages for the discharge made wrongful by the cited act is redressible in a district court suit or must be litigated as part of the employees compensation claim. We assume original jurisdiction under Art. 7, ? 4 , Okl. Con., to settle this first-impression question and hold that rights created by H.B. No. 1353 are cognizable only in a district court action.