Virginia has several different types of compensation, or money, that you may receive after you have been injured at work and have filed a worker’s compensation claim. The names of many of them sound similar, and it can be difficult to understand what each one means. One type is Temporary Partial Disability Benefits, for people who have been injured and can still work while they recover.
Temporary Partial Disability (TPD) Benefits are paid if, after your injury at work, you cannot go back to your regular job duties and instead must work a light-duty job that pays less. These benefits are two-thirds (2/3) of the difference between your regular pay and the light-duty pay, up to a maximum limit, and they are only during the time when you are doing the light-duty job before you return to your regular job.
If they give you a restriction on the type of work you can do until you are healed, that is a light-duty restriction. For example, a nurse who broke a bone may be unable to do her regular job while she is in a cast, but she is able to be given an administrative position temporarily, such as unit secretary, and work on the computer while she heals.
The light-duty work you can do while you are healing may not pay as much as your regular work. In the example above, the nurse may be paid $23/hour while doing nursing duties and $15/hour while doing administrative duties. The law looks at the amount of money you are usually paid and the amount of money you are paid for the light-duty work, and then takes the difference between the two amounts. In the example, the difference between $23/hour and $15/hour is $8/hour. You receive 2/3 of that difference between the two rates of pay as a benefit; in the example, that would be $5.33/hour.
There is a maximum weekly amount for TPD benefits, currently $1,082.00. You will not receive benefits above this amount. If the 2/3 of the difference between your regular work and your light-duty work is $1090, for example, you will still only receive $1,082 since it is the maximum weekly benefit.
The Temporary Partial Disability benefits will stop once you are fully healed and can return to your regular job at your regular rate of pay. You will also not get any adjustments in your TPD benefits for a rising cost of living, since it is intended to help you bridge the gap between your regular pay and your current, lower pay. If your current, lower pay increases via a cost of living adjustment or a raise your TPD benefits will go down because the difference between your regular pay and your current pay is less.
HammondTownsend will work with you to file your worker’s compensation claim and get you the benefits that you are entitled to. We will clearly explain all benefits relevant to your situation. Call us at 888-580-9048 today for a free consultation.