Some employers have a nasty way of reducing injured employees hours who are recovering from a work accident with temporary light duty work restrictions. You may be entitled to workers’ compensation called temporary partial disability benefits if your take home pay is drastically reduced. Here’s how to know whether you are entitled to these benefits, and how to get them:
1. Find the letter from the adjuster that tells you what your average monthly wage is and what your daily compensation rate is when you are taken off work completely by your treating doctor. If you haven’t received an average monthly wage determination letter, you will have to ask the adjuster to send you one so that you both know whether you are entitled to TPD while working reduced hours on light duty
2. Multiply the daily compensation rate by the number of days in your employer’s pay period. If your employer pays you bi-weekly, you will multiply the daily rate by 14 to get your biweekly compensation rate. If your employer pays you weekly, multiply the daily rate by 7.
3. Get your paycheck stub and note what your net wages are (meaning those after taxes and deductions). Do this for each paycheck while you are working light duty.
4. If your net wages are less than your compensation rate for the same time period, then you are entitled to the difference. (Subtract your net wages from your compensation rate to get the difference.)
5. Send a copy of each paycheck stub that is less than your compensation rate to the adjuster with a request that the adjuster pay TPD. Allow two weeks before you bug the adjuster about not getting a check.
6. Make sure that it is your employer that is reducing your hours; not that you are asking for less hours or calling in sick.
