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Home Workers’ Compensation Attorney Working Light Duty While on Workers’ Comp

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working light duty while on workers compWhen you’re hurt at work, getting back on your feet doesn’t necessarily mean going straight back to your old job. Sometimes your doctor will clear you to do lighter or modified tasks while you continue healing. These restrictions can support your recovery and prevent your injuries from worsening. However, working light duty while on workers’ comp can affect your benefits.

Younce, Vtipil, Baznik & Banks has over 100 years of combined experience helping injured workers in North Carolina understand how light-duty work fits within the state’s workers’ compensation system. Our English- and Spanish-speaking staff members provide personal attention and honest, compassionate guidance to every client. You’ll always know where your case stands. Contact us for a free case evaluation today.

What Is Light-Duty Work?

Light-duty work includes tasks that fit the physical or mental/emotional restrictions your treating physician gives you after an on-the-job injury. North Carolina’s workers’ compensation laws allow an employer to offer work to meet a worker’s medical restrictions as outlined by their doctor up until the time the injured worker reaches maximum medical improvement and is within a 50 mile radius of the employee’s home. You have the right to have the light duty job approved by your authorized treating physician.

Light duty on workers’ comp is supposed to help you stay active and maintain income while you recover. It might include shorter hours, lighter lifting, or completely different tasks. For example, if you usually lift heavy boxes but can’t do that after your injury, your employer might assign you to clerical duties instead.

However, your employer must follow the doctor’s restrictions exactly. If the tasks you’re asked to do go beyond what your doctor approved, you have the right to refuse that work.

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Examples of Light-Duty Restrictions or Modified Work Duty

Light-duty work can look very different depending on your job and your injury. For example:

  • Desk assignments for workers typically in physical roles
  • Reduced hours or flexible shifts
  • Operating equipment that requires less physical exertion
  • Inspecting, organizing, or supervising
  • Helping with training or documentation tasks

In some cases, light duty on workers’ comp means performing the same job but with limits. For instance, a warehouse worker might still handle packages under 10 pounds. A construction worker might continue working but avoid ladders or heavy tools.

Your doctor specifies what’s medically appropriate, not your employer. The restrictions should come directly from your treating physician. If your employer tries to assign duties outside those limits, notify your doctor and your attorney right away. Doing work that exceeds your restrictions could worsen your injury – and put your benefits at risk. If there is a question about whether a specific job is appropriate, you can ask that the authorized treating physician look at the job description and approve it or not.

Do I Have to Accept Light-Duty Employment in North Carolina?

If, prior to maximum medical improvement, your employer offers a light-duty position that your doctor confirms fits your restrictions, North Carolina law says that you generally have to accept it. (N.C.G.S. 97-2(22)). Refusing suitable employment can lead to a suspension of your workers’ compensation benefits, unless the Industrial Commission considers the refusal justified. This means you don’t have to accept a light-duty job that clearly violates your medical restrictions (N.C.G.S. § 97-32).

After reaching maximum medical improvement, the light duty is suitable if it is employment that the employee is capable of performing considering the employee’s preexisting and injury-related physical and mental limitations, vocational skills, education, and experience and is located within a 50-mile radius of the employee’s residence. (N.C.G.S. 97-2(22)).

Before you make any decision about a light-duty offer, talk to a North Carolina workers’ comp attorney. A lawyer can help you evaluate whether the offer is legal and protects your health.

Can I Still Get Workers’ Comp Benefits While on Light-Duty Work?

You can still receive workers’ compensation benefits while doing light duty, but the amount can change depending on how much you earn in your modified role. If you return to light-duty work and still earn the same wages you did pre-injury, your wage replacement benefits will end.

If you must work a light-duty position that pays less than your regular job because of your injuries, you may qualify for temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits to make up part of the difference (N.C.G.S § 97-30). TPD benefits cover two-thirds of the gap between your pre-injury average weekly wages and your current earnings, up to a yearly statewide cap. That calculation is made on a week by week basis.

For example, if you earned $1,000 per week before your injury and now make $500 in a week on light duty, workers’ comp should provide $333.33 per week to supplement your income. TPD benefits prevent you from losing significant wages while you heal and ideally transition back to full capacity. No income taxes are taken out of your weekly workers’ comp check.

Your benefits continue as long as you follow your doctor’s instructions, cooperate with reasonable treatment, and perform within your restrictions. If your doctor later clears you for full duty, your benefits may stop. Your medical expenses should remain covered, however.

What Happens If an Employer Can’t Accommodate Work Restrictions?

Some employers may not have enough flexibility to provide light-duty or modified positions. If your employer can’t accommodate your medical restrictions, you typically remain entitled to temporary total disability (TTD) benefits (N.C.G.S § 97-29). TTD benefits are the wage replacement you receive when you’re unable to work at all while recovering. If you’re cleared for broader activity later, and your employer can then provide suitable work, your status may change to light duty.

You don’t have to accept work that goes beyond your restrictions. Doing so can aggravate your injury and complicate your workers’ compensation claim. If you’re unsure whether a proposed role is appropriate, talk to our experienced workers’ compensation attorneys before making a decision.

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Get in Touch with Our Workers’ Compensation Lawyers in Raleigh, NC, for Help with Your Case

Recovering from a workplace injury can be challenging enough. You shouldn’t have to worry about whether your employer is following the law and jeopardizing your health. Working light duty while on workers’ comp can help you stay active, but it’s essential that the arrangement meets your medical restrictions.

Younce, Vtipil, Baznik & Banks has spent decades representing injured workers throughout North Carolina. With over 100 years of combined experience, our attorneys use a state-of-the-art case tracking system to keep your workers’ comp claim organized and transparent. You’ll receive hands-on attention and regular communication throughout your entire workers’ comp case.

Our firm has achieved positive results for workers across the state, including a case where an employer argued that the injured worker refused suitable employment for a role that violated her work restrictions. Clients often share how supported they felt:

“We are very grateful with this firm, They have been our lawyers for more than 17 years, always excellent service and good communication, in Spanish or English! Younce, Vtipil, attorneys at Law always fighting for the rights of their clients!! For that reason I give them 5 stars if I could I would give them more!!!!” – Javier Pintos

Don’t wait – call 919-661-9000 for your free case evaluation today.

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