Temporary Disability Benefits-Know Your Rights

Workin’ 9 to 5…and then some

It is not uncommon these days to be employed at more than workplace.  After all, the cost of living is high in the Bay Area, and supporting a family on one income is not an easy task.  These issues make it even more difficult when someone suffers a work-related injury that renders them Temporarily Totally Disabled, unable to earn the money that he or she so desperately needs.  The person is not only usually precluded from being able to perform the job that is related to the injury, but also is prevented from returning to work at the other job(s).  When this happens, it is important to make sure that the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Carrier is paying you the right Temporary Disability rate.

If you are injured at work and you are temporarily unable to return to work right away because of that injury, you will receive Temporary Disability (TD) benefits.  These are calculated per the Labor Code of California to be 2/3 of your average weekly wage.  You should receive TD payments every two weeks.

However, if you have more than one job, those wages should be included in calculating your TD benefit amount as well!  Let’s say you work at 2 different retailers.  If you are injured on the first job and cannot immediately return to work, you most likely cannot return to the second job either.  The first job alone does not reflect your average weekly earnings, so it is important to make sure the insurance company is including the earnings from the second job as well!

The downside is that if you were getting paid more at the second job (where you weren’t injured), that hourly rate does not apply in determining the TD amount, only the rate of pay at the job you were injured.  The hours from the second job will be added at the hourly rate of the first job.    The big thing to remember is that if you were working more than one job when you were injured, be sure to let the adjuster on your claim (if you don’t have an attorney) or your attorney know, and provide them with the pay-stub/tax-information that can help them determine what the TD rate should be.

Rodman J Martin