Temporary disability means the employee does eventually get better. If an employee is off work for 3 days or less, no compensation will be paid (the employee can claim sick leave from the employer). If the employee is off for more than 3 days, the employee gets compensation which also covers the first 3 days. Temporary disability can be total or partial:

• Total means the employee is unable to work for a while. The employee will get ³/4 (75%) of the normal monthly wage as compensation. The formula is:
  monthly wage x 75 ÷ 100, if the employee is paid monthly (for weekly paid employees, multiply the weekly wage by 4.3 to get the monthly wage)

• Partial means the employee can go to work, but on light duty for fewer hours. If the employee earns less doing the lighter work, he or she will get ³/4 of the difference between the normal and reduced monthly wage.

Example:
Thembiso’s wages are R500 per week.
What would his Compensation be for a temporary total disability?
Multiply weekly wage by 4.3 : R500 x 4.3 = R2 150 per month Monthly wage x 75 ÷ 100
R2 150 x 75 ÷ 100 = R1 612.50
Thambiso would get R1 612.50 per month from the Compensation Fund for Total Temporary Disability

For an occupational disease, use the wage at the time of the diagnosis and not at the time when the employee first got exposed to the disease. If the employee is now unemployed, use the wage that he or she would probably have earned if still employed. Compensation for temporary disability will be paid for up to 12 months. If the condition of the employee has not improved after 12 months, the commissioner may agree to continue payments for up to 24 months. After 24 months the Commissioner may decide that the condition is permanent and grant compensation on the basis of permanent disability. The Commissioner also pays all medical accounts, including medicine for which accounts must be submitted.
(See: Problem 16: Employee Does Not Get the Correct Amount of Compensation Money)