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Also known as “lost wages,” Temporary Partial or Total Disability Benefits are available to workers who must miss work due to their work-related injury or illness. Temporary Partial and Total Disability BenefitsIn are capped at 400 weeks and may end before that if a doctor clears the worker to return to their regular duties.

Temporary Partial Disability Benefits

If a worker cannot work at all due to their workplace injury or illness, they may be eligible for Temporary Total Disability Benefits, which are generally calculated at two-thirds of their average weekly wage.

Temporary Total Disability Benefits

If a worker can return to work either at reduced hours or “light duty,” they may be eligible for Temporary Partial Disability Benefits, which help make up the difference between what they are earning and what they would earn if performing their regular duties. Temporary Partial Disability Benefits are calculated at two-thirds of that difference.

Once a doctor has determined that a worker has reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) but is still impaired, that worker may be entitled to Permanent Partial or Total Disability Benefits.

Permanent Partial Disability Benefits

If a work-related injury or illness left a worker with a lasting medical condition or lost function (often called an impairment) but the worker still able to work in some capacity, that worker may be eligible for Permanent Partial Disability Benefits. The amount of Permanent Partial Disability Benefits a worker will receive depends upon the extent of their impairment and their former wages. 

New Jersey workers’ compensation law sets forth a schedule of disabilities which provides the maximum benefits for impairments to specified body parts, such as a hand, arm, foot, leg, or eye, at different percentages of lost function. Permanent impairments to other body parts such as head, spine, or organs may render a worker eligible for a “nonscheduled award” for a portion of the maximum time period (600 weeks) that corresponds to the percentage of disability. 

Permanent Total Disability Benefits

When a worker has reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) but is permanently and totally disabled, meaning that they can’t work at all due to their workplace injury, they may be eligible for Permanent Total Disability Benefits. These Benefits will be paid at the Temporary Total Disability rate for 450 weeks, after which the worker will be reevaluated. These Benefits 

Certain severe injuries—such as the loss of both eyes, hands, arms, feet, or legs, or a combination of any two—are automatically considered to result in permanent and total disability.

The family of a worker who dies due to a workplace injury or illness may be eligible for benefits including some funeral expenses. The definition of “dependents” who are eligible for these benefits is much broader under NJ workers’ compensation law than it is under the IRS. Contact us if a loved one died while working – we may be able to get you workers’ compensation benefits.