Compensation Rate – Casual and Seasonal Employment
PRO 35/2010

Effective date: January 1, 2011

Application: All claims for casual, part-time and seasonal workers.

Policy subject: Benefits for Workers - Initial benefits

Purpose:

To establish the wage base for part-time, casual and seasonal workers.

BACKGROUND

  1. The Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) has approved policy guidelines regarding the establishment of the appropriate wage rate for part-time, casual and seasonal workers.
  2. This procedure provides guidelines to establish a wage rate for part-time, casual and seasonal workers.

PROCEDURE

  1. Operations staff will base wage loss benefits on the worker’s gross earnings prior to the commencement of earnings loss or recurrence. PRO 06/2016, Establishing Initial Wage Base, will apply.
  2. Operations staff or Operations staff will identify the potential Section 70(4) adjustment (CLM: Section 70(4)).
  3. Case Management Support – 2 to 6 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. Case Management Support, at time of file review following referral from Operations staff, will identify the potential Section 70(4) adjustment.
    2. Case Management Support will create an activity, for 13 weeks following first date of loss.
  4. Operations staff – 2 to 6 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. Following referral from Case Management Support, where it has been indicated there is potential for a Section 70(4) adjustment, Customer Care Facilitator (CCF) will review and determine whether the original wage base at the commencement of earnings loss or recurrence is inequitable as defined in POL 35/2010, Compensation Rate – Casual and Seasonal Employment – Section 70(4). They will record their decision and reasoning in their Recovery and Return to Work Plan (RRP).
    2. Customer Care Facilitator (CCF), where an adjustment has been identified, will include a paragraph in the Letter of Claims Acceptance (LCA) to explain the Section 70(4) provisions indicating that an adjustment to wage loss benefits, including the reasons for the adjustment, may be necessary.
  5. Case Management Support – 13 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. Case Management Support will review the work activity at 13 weeks following the commencement of earnings loss. The RRP will be reviewed to determine whether the Operations staff considered the original wage base inequitable as defined in POL 35/2010, Compensation Rate – Casual and Seasonal Employment – Section 70(4).
    2. Where Section 70(4) of the Act applies and the wage base is considered inequitable, Case Management Support will gather wage information for 12 month gross earnings for a worker regularly employed in similar employment. In cases where the injured worker was regularly employed with the employer for more than 12 months, albeit on a seasonal basis, the earnings of the injured worker with this employer for the 12 months prior to the injury may be used to establish the wage base under Section 70(4) of the Act. Otherwise, the wage information should be based on an average of several workers in that type of employment and should be determined sequentially as follows:
      1. The first effort will be with the injury employer;
      2. The second level effort, where the first is unsuccessful, will be with several employers in the same geographical region; and
      3. Where levels one and two are not successful, a wage table developed from Statistics Canada or other relevant agencies will be consulted. The table will be available to workers when used to establish a wage base;
    3. For comparative purposes, Case Management Support will ensure information is obtained regarding the injured worker’s gross earnings from all sources for the full 12 months prior to the commencement of earnings loss as called for by Section 70(1)(a) of the Act;
    4. Case Management Support will refer the wage information to the Payment Specialist.
  6. Payment Specialist – 14 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. The Payment Specialist will use the wage information from Case Management Support to calculate the new wage base and compensation rate and ensure the information is placed on file;
    2. The effective date of the adjusted wage base is to be the 1st workday of the 27th week of compensation;
    3. The Payment Specialist will create a work activity for 24 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss and refer the file back to customer care facilitator Support.
  7. Case Management Support – 15 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. Case Management Support will review the activity from the Payment Specialist and issue the Section 70(4) form letter that will provide the adjusted wage loss benefit amount and an explanation of the reasons for the adjustment to wage loss benefits.
  8. Customer Care Facilitator (CCF) – 24 weeks from the commencement of earnings loss:
    1. The Customer Care Facilitator (CCF) will confirm the effective date of the new wage base with the injured worker making certain that the reasons for the adjustment are explained.

Policy references

Legislative Authority #

The Workers’ Compensation Act, 2013

18, 20, 23, 68, 70(1), 70(4)
 

Document History

PRO 10/2003 Average Weekly Earnings – Section 70(4)

Complements

POL 35/2010    Compensation Rate – Casual and Seasonal Employment (Section 70(4))
POL 06/2016    Establishing Initial Wage Base
PRO 06/2016    Establishing Initial Wage Base
POL 28/2010    Compensation Rate – Minimum and Average Weekly Earnings
POL 22/2016    Offset of Canada or Quebec Pension Plan Disability Benefits
POL 05/2016    Compensation Rate – Excluded Earnings
POL 08/2007     Compensation Rate – Where No Earnings at Disablement or Death
POL 07/2020    Maximum Wage Rates
PRO 07/2020    Maximum Wage Rates
PRO 09/2020    Minimum Average Weekly Earnings (Section 70(5))
PRO 10/2020    Minimum Compensation (Section 75)
 

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