First 26 weeks of total incapacity and employed under an award, industrial agreement or enterprise agreement
For the first 26 weeks, you are entitled to your basic award rate. This is called your current weekly wage rate. It does not include overtime, shift work or penalty rates. If you are not sure what award you are on, contact the Department of Industrial Relations on 131 628 for your award details.
If you are paid under an enterprise agreement, you will be paid the base rate of the enterprise agreement during the first 26 weeks of incapacity.
Totally incapacitated and not under an award
If there is no award rate for the job, but your salary is based on an award rate (eg. a foreman whose salary is based on the highest tradesman’s rate) that award rate will be the benefit paid [section 42(3) (a) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987].
If your salary is not based on an award rate or enterprise agreement, you will be paid 80% of your average weekly earnings [section 42(1) (d) and section 43 of the Act], subject to a maximum amount adjusted twice yearly (April and October).
Totally incapacitated and a casual employee
Where the worker comes under an award
The hours you have worked per week for up to 12 months prior to the date of injury will usually be averaged. The average weekly hours will then be applied to the award rate, limited to a maximum of 40 hours per week.
Where there is no award
A casual worker would receive 80% of their average weekly earnings.
'Average weekly earnings' are an average of the wages earned by the worker over the previous 12 months. If the worker has not been working that long, or worked broken periods, the insurer must work out a figure 'best calculated to give the rate per week at which the worker was being remunerated' [section 43 (1) (a) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987], ie. it should be a fair and reasonable assessment.
If you have not been working for the employer long, the insurer may use the wages of another worker doing the same work as a comparison, or even another worker doing a similar job elsewhere in the district. [section 43 (1) (a)(i) and section 43 (1) (a)(ii) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987]
Maximum payments to casual workers
In a situation where a worker is employed in two or more jobs at any one time, the income from both jobs will be taken into account when calculating your weekly benefit , to a maximum total of 40 working hours per week [section 42(7) of the Workers Compensation Act 1987]. The insurer of the employer where the injury occurred pays the benefit and the current weekly wage rate is calculated as a proportion of the total wage from both employers.
The benefit payable will be the earnings from the combined employment, averaged to a maximum of 40 hours per week.
In any case, the maximum benefit will be limited to the statutory maximum entitlement of $1,621.60 (on and from 1 October 2008).
The relevant insurer should be able to provide the worker with a case specific explanation of entitlements.
Total incapacity benefits after the first 26 weeks
After 26 weeks, this amount is the statutory amount per week. If you have dependants you are entitled to additional weekly amounts in respect of those dependants. The total weekly payment is not to exceed your current weekly wage rate (ie. rate paid during first 26 weeks).
The statutory rate is set out in the Benefits Guide and is updated twice yearly (April and October).