Wash. WC Benefits to Increase 1.9 Percent

Workers currently receiving Washington workers’ compensation time-loss or pension benefits will receive a 1.9 percent cost-of-living increase on July 1, 2003.

The new maximum monthly benefit will be $3,794, which is 120 percent of the state’s average monthly wage for workers injured after June 30, 1996. The increase is based on the average annual wage of all workers in Washington. That wage – set by the Employment Security Department – rose to $37,940, or 1.9 percent above 2001’s average wage of $37,229.

State law requires that maximum time-loss benefits be recalculated each July 1 to reflect the change in the state’s average wage from the previous calendar year.

An injured worker’s maximum time-loss or pension rate coincides with the date of their injury. For workers injured between July 1, 1995, and June 30, 1996, the maximum monthly benefit will rise to $3,635.91. Injuries occurring July 1, 1994, through June 30, 1995, will have a maximum rate of $3,477.83. Injuries occurring July 1, 1993, through June 30, 1994, will have a maximum rate of $3,319.75. The new monthly maximum for injuries occurring July 1, 1988, through June 30, 1993, will be $3,161.66.

Maximum time-loss and pension benefits for injuries occurring before July 1, 1988, amount to 75 percent of the state’s average wage, or $2,371.25 a month.

Time-loss benefits partially compensate workers for lost wages due to a job-related injury or illness. Pension benefits are paid when a work-related injury or illness prevents a worker from becoming gainfully employed. Pensions also are paid to a worker’s surviving spouse and dependent children when a workplace accident or illness results in death.

The amounts differ because over the last decade the state Legislature increased the benefits based on when a worker was injured or became ill.

The July 1 increase applies to both State Fund and self-insured employers. Labor and Industries manages the State Fund, which insures about 1.9 million workers for 160,000 employers.