Compensation is paid for getting injured at work or for diseases caused by work. These are the main types of compensation payments:

• For temporary disability (the employee eventually recovers from the injury or illness)
• For permanent disability (the employee never fully recovers)
• For death
• For medical expenses
• Additional compensation

Compensation is always worked out as a percentage of the wage the employee was earning at the time the disease or injury was diagnosed. If the employee is unemployed by the time a disease is diagnosed the wage they would have been earning must be calculated.

The Compensation Fund does not pay for pain and suffering, only for loss of movement or use of your body.

TEMPORARY DISABILITY

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

EXAMPLE

Thembiso’s wages are R2 000 per week. What would his Compensation be for a temporary total disability?

Multiply weekly wage by 4.3: R2 000 x 4.3 = R8600 per month

Monthly wage x 75 ÷ 100: R8 600 x 75 ÷ 100 = R6450

Thambiso would get R6 450 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)

PERMANENT DISABILITY

Permanent disability means that an employee never fully recovers from the injury or sickness. A permanent disability can completely prevent an employee from working, or it can just inconvenience an employee. The most serious is called 100% disability, and the least serious is called 1% disability. A doctor must write a medical report about the disability. The Commissioner, with the help of a panel of doctors, works out the degree of disability. The degrees of disability are set out in Schedule 2 of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act. Some examples are:

• Loss of two limbs: 100%
• Total loss of sight: 100%
• Loss of hearing in both ears: 50%
• Loss of sight in one eye: 30%
• Loss of one whole big toe: 7%
• Loss of one other toe: 1%

Compensation for permanent disability is paid either as a monthly pension or as a lump sum:

• if the injury is measured as more than 30%, the employee gets a pension
• if the injury is 30% or less, the employee gets a lump sum. The formula for the monthly pension is: [monthly wage x (75 ÷ 100)] x (percentage disability ÷ 100) This amount will be paid once a month for the rest of the employee’s life.

EXAMPLE 1

Joe lost one of his hands while pushing some poles through a saw. At the time of his accident, he was earning R8,000 per month. 

The percentage of disability for loss of a hand is 50%. Calculate the amount  Joe would be compensated by the Compensation Fund as follows:

Monthly wage x (75 ÷ 100) x (percentage disability ÷ 100)

R8 000 x (75 ÷ 100) x (50 ÷ 100)] = R 6,000 x (50 ÷ 100) = R3 000

Joe will get R3 000 per month for the rest of his life.

The formula for the lump sum is:

(monthly wage x 15) x (percentage disability ÷ 100)

This amount will be paid once only and there will be no further payments.

EXAMPLE 2

Freddie lost an eye while working in a factory. Before the accident, he got R8 000 a month. What compensation should he get for his permanent disability? The percentage of disability for the loss of one eye is 30%. Freddie will get a lump sum because his injury was 30% or less. To work out the lump sum:

(Monthly wage x 15) x (percentage disability ÷ 100)

( R8, 000 x 15) x [(30 ÷ 100)] R120 000 x (30 ÷ 100) = R36 000

Freddie will receive R36 000 as a lump sum payment

DEATH BENEFITS

Compensation can be claimed by the widow or dependants if an employee dies as a result of a work-related accident or disease. Claimants for death benefits must submit copies of the following documents:

• Marriage certificate or proof that the couple lived as husband and wife
• Birth certificates or baptismal certificates of children (for proof of children)
• The death certificate
• Declaration by the widow/er (form W.C.L 32)
• The employer’s report of the accident or disease Funeral accounts (form W.C.L 46)
• A special Compensation Form must be filled in, giving details of income and property

WHO CAN CLAIM COMPENSATION WHEN AN EMPLOYEE DIES IN THE COURSE AND SCOPE OF DUTY?

• The widow/er:
  • Lump sum payment: 2 x monthly pension of employee (the pension is the amount the employee would have been paid if he/she had been 100% disabled)
  • monthly pension for life: 40% x monthly pension of employee, paid every month
• Each child under the age of 18 years (including illegitimate, adopted and step-children) is entitled to:
  • 20% x monthly pension of the employee, paid every month until the child is 18 years old
  • the pension can continue for longer if the child is mentally or physically handicapped
• Other dependants, if there is no widow/er or children (parents, sisters, brothers, half-sisters, etc.):
  • full dependants: get the same as the widow
  • partial dependants: get a lump sum that is worked out according to the degree of dependence
• The person who pays for the funeral expenses: gets paid expenses up to R18 251.

NOTE: The total monthly pension per family cannot be more than the pension the deceased employee would have received if he/she was 100% disabled (i.e. 75% of the monthly wage).

MEDICAL EXPENSES

All the medical expenses of an employee will be paid for a maximum of two years from the date of the accident. This may include a reasonable amount required for transportation.

ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION

If an employee is injured, dies or contracts an occupational disease because of the negligence of the employer, or a defect in machinery or equipment, the employee can get extra compensation for temporary or permanent disability. Any employee who is under 26 years old at the time of an injury or disease will get extra compensation. An application for additional (increased) compensation must be made on a Form W930 within 24 months of the injury. The Commissioner can extend the period if good reasons exist.