Workers' Compensation Glossary Terms

Funds available for award to the employee after the employee returns to work or after they were injured (if they can’t return to work). There is no minimum percentage for repayment for a loss of function. When a physician indicates that an employee will not further medically improve from a work-related injury, the employee may be eligible for a permanent partial disability award. Award benefits are for loss of body parts or a reduction of function in a body part, loss of a substantial part of a body part resulting in a permanent partial loss of its use, or if the injury results in a permanent partial loss of function. Awards for the loss of function have been as low as 0.62% loss of function.

Violations of workplace safety standards established by the federal Department of Labor, specifically detailed and updated by the Occupational Safety and Health Act or OSHA. The safety standards vary by industry, equipment, and potential exposure to dangerous situations and products.

A person who possesses or controls property or is otherwise allowed to be on it is justified in using reasonable physical force to the extent he reasonably believes it to be necessary to stop an aggressor from trespassing or attempting to trespass in or upon it. The owner can use deadly physical force to defend himself or a third party when he believes an aggressor is about to inflict deadly or serious bodily harm, when he reasonably believes it is necessary to prevent the trespasser from attempting to commit arson or any violent crime, or to the extent he reasonably believes it is necessary to stop someone from forcibly entering his home or workplace. A person is not justified in using deadly physical force if he knows he can safely retreat (except from his home or office), surrender possession of property if the aggressor claims to own it, obey a demand not to take action he is not required to take, or if he is the initial aggressor. The test for the degree of force in self-defense requires the jury to view the situation from the defendant's perspective and then decide whether the defendant's belief was reasonable.

In common law, the law that details the maximum period of time that legal proceedings may be enacted after certain events - either criminal or civil. The statute of limitations will vary by the event and by state and country.

An agreement for the financial settlement of a lawsuit to be paid out in installments rather than in a lump sum. Structured settlements usually result from large settlements and are often created through the purchase of annuities. The payments can be structured in any way the parties choose (monthly, yearly, quarterly, etc.). Structured settlements are common in large recovery cases, often in anticipation of long-term financial and health care costs.

A continuation of wages offered by the Bureau of Worker’s Compensation for employees unable to work following a worker’s compensation claim. Employees who accept this plan will receive between 72-66 percent of their wages while off work. They typically have no employer health benefit coverage under this temporary disability plan (Especially problematic if workers without benefits are diagnosed with an illness or injury unrelated to their workplace that requires serious or expensive treatment, such as cancer).

Agreements sometimes offered by employers to replace wages and to continue health benefit coverage while an employee is off work following a worker's compensation claim. Wage continuations are often provided at the full employee wage rate and may include continued contributions to an employee's retirement plan.