Temporary Disability Benefits are one type of workers’ compensation benefit. They are payments an injured worker receives for lost wages during their recovery process if they are unable to do their usual job because of the work injury.
Workers are eligible if their primary treating physician says they're unable to do their usual job for more than three days or they were hospitalized overnight.
Workers are not eligible if their employer has other work the injured worker can do that pays the same wages as their usual job.
For eligible workers, the first Temporary Disability Benefit payment will be issued within 14 days after both of the following events have happened:
We will promptly issue the first payment as well as a letter explaining how the payment amount was calculated after we establish benefit eligibility. After the first payment, Temporary Disability Benefits will be paid every two weeks for as long as the worker is eligible.
Please note: The first three days of disability with time loss from work are not covered by Temporary Disability Benefits unless the injured worker has an overnight hospital stay or the temporary disability lasts more than 14 days (at which point these first three days will be paid retroactively).
Temporary Disability Benefits are usually paid at two-thirds of the gross (pre-tax) wages a worker loses while they’re recovering, and aren’t subject to these types of deductions:
There are two types of Temporary Disability Benefits:
Temporary Partial Disability – For injured workers able to perform some work during the recovery process but earn less than their normal income. Temporary Partial Disability usually pays two-thirds of the difference.
Temporary Total Disability – For injured workers who can’t perform any available modified or alternative work during the recovery process or where no such work is available. Temporary Total Disability usually pays two-thirds of the worker’s normal income.
Temporary Disability Benefits end when any of these following events take place:
Depending on when the injury occurred, there may also be a time-based limit on how much Temporary Disability Benefits can be paid. For Example:
When Temporary Disability Benefits end, we will send the worker a letter within 14 days after the final payment. The letter explains why the payments are stopping and lists all Temporary Disability Benefit payments sent to the worker.
If the treating physician says the worker will never recover completely, the worker may be eligible to receive Permanent Disability Benefits. They may also be eligible for Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits if their employer has no work available to the injured worker due to their injury.