Learn about the benefits you may be eligible for if you are injured or sick at work, as well as how Hawaii determines the amount of those benefits.
If you were injured or fell sick on the job in Hawaii, you may be entitled to benefits under the state workers’ compensation system. The amount of workers’ compensation benefits you get will be determined by a variety of criteria specific to your case, including as the type of your injuries, your capacity to return to work, and your earnings at the time of your accident. This page describes how Hawaii’s most significant workers’ compensation payouts are calculated.
To collect workers’ compensation payments, you must submit a workers’ compensation claim unless your employer (or its insurance carrier) pays benefits voluntarily after you disclose your accident or sickness. When you submit a claim in Hawaii, the law presumes that your injury or sickness is work-related, unless your employer presents strong proof to the contrary. (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-82, 386-83, 386-85 (2020).)
Benefits for Temporary Total Disability
If your doctor advises you need to be off work while you heal from your injuries, you should be eligible for temporary total disability (TTD) payments to help you make up for missed wages. In Hawaii, these benefits are not available until the fourth day of missed work. To guarantee that you get TTD benefits on time, you must obtain a certificate from your treating physician confirming that you are unable to work.
TTD benefits are computed as two-thirds of your pre-injury average weekly pay (usually determined based on your earnings during the previous 12 months). However, Hawaii law, like other states, establishes maximum and minimum weekly amounts for TTD payments based on a percentage of statewide average salaries. The maximum for 2020 is $925, while the lowest is $231. (TTD payouts, like other workers’ compensation payments, are not taxable.)
TTD payments will continue to be paid to you as long as you are unable to return to work, or until you attain maximum medical improvement (MMI), which means your medical condition has stabilized and is unlikely to improve further. (Haw. Rev. Stat. 386-51 (2020), 386-31(b).)
Benefits for Temporary Partial Disability
If you can return to work in some capacity after your accident but are unable to complete your typical job tasks while you recuperate, you are eligible to temporary partial disability compensation. (Your doctor, for example, may temporarily limit you to sedentary or part-time employment.) The benefits will remain until you’re able to return to your usual, full-duty employment or you’ve attained MMI.
Temporary partial disability payments in Hawaii are computed as two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury average weekly income and your current earnings, subject to the same maximum and minimum rates as TTD benefits. For example, if you were earning $900 per week before to your accident but are now earning $600 in a light-duty job, you would get two-thirds of $300, or $200 per week in benefits. (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-32(b) (2020).)
Benefits for Permanent Partial Disability
Once you’ve achieved MMI, a doctor will examine you to see whether your accident or illness has left you with any lasting disability and, if so, to what degree. In most circumstances with any enduring impairment, you’ll earn permanent partial disability (PPD) compensation. Except for disfigurement awards, the entire amount of a PPD award is determined by multiplying the maximum TTD rate by a set number of weeks, stated as a percentage, depending on the afflicted part(s) of your body and the level of your disability.
In Hawaii, your eligibility for PPD benefits isn’t contingent on your capacity to work. You may be eligible for these benefits regardless of your current income. (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-32(a) (2020).)
Awards for Scheduled Loss
A timetable in Hawaii law specifies a number of weeks for the loss or loss of function of certain bodily parts, primarily the extremities, eyes, and ears. A full loss of a hand, for example, is worth 244 weeks. If you’ve lost partial use of a hand, the number of weeks would a fraction of that total dependent on the amount of your handicap. For example, 25% loss of hand usage is worth 61 weeks (25% of 244). For such disability, the PPD award would be 61 times the maximum weekly benefit ($925 in 2020), for a total of $56,425.
Awards for Total Person Impairment
If you have a permanent impairment to a portion of your body that is not on the schedule, such as your back, neck, or head, or a loss of any physical or mental function, the doctor will assign you a PPD rating that is represented as a percentage of impairment to the “whole person.” That percentage will be multiplied by 312 to get the entire reward, which will then be multiplied by the maximum PPD rate.
For example, if you had a back injury that left you with a 5% whole-person disability, your PPD award would be calculated by multiplying 15.6 (5% of 312) by the maximum weekly benefit ($925 in 2020), for a total of $14,430.
Disfigurement
If your injuries (including medical treatment) resulted in permanent scarring or another kind of disfigurement, you may be eligible for a separate disfigurement award. The sum will be determined by what is deemed reasonable in the circumstances, up to a maximum of $30,000.
Weekly or lump sum payments for permanent partial disability awards
Even while the maximum TTD rate is utilized to calculate the overall amount of PPD awards, the weekly rate at which you’ll get the award is determined by your actual pre-injury salary. The weekly payments will be equal to two-thirds of your typical weekly earnings. For example, if you earned $900 per week before to your accident, you would get PPD benefits at the rate of $600 per week until you got the entire amount of your award. You may, however, ask to collect your prize in a lump payment. (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-32, 386-54 (2020).)
Benefits for Permanent Total Disability
If you are completely and permanently handicapped, you may be eligible for weekly payments at the same rate as TTD benefits, subject to the same maximum and minimum. These benefits, however, are modified on a yearly basis in proportion to changes in the maximum weekly benefit amount. There is no time restriction or maximum amount for permanent complete disability compensation in Hawaii.
If you suffer any of the following injuries, Hawaii will infer that you are permanently and fully disabled:
persistent and total paralysis of both legs, both arms, or one of each; or a brain injury resulting in severe, incurable mental impairment.
Disability will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for other injuries. (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-31, 386-35 (2020).)
Other Worker’s Compensation Benefits in Hawaii
Workers’ compensation in Hawaii additionally provides the following benefits:
Medical advantages. Your employer’s insurance should cover any medical expenditures incurred as a result of your workplace accident or sickness. You have the ability to pick your own treating doctor for your workers’ compensation case in Hawaii, as long as the doctor operates on the island where you were injured. You may also be paid for reasonable transportation costs incurred while seeking medical care. (Arizona Revised Statutes 386-21 (2020).)
Rehabilitation for the workforce. If you have a persistent impairment that makes it impossible for you to return to your previous career, you may be eligible for vocational rehabilitation services, including retraining. Participation in a vocational rehabilitation program in Hawaii is entirely optional. (Arizona Revised Statutes 386-25 (2020).)
Benefits upon death. Workers’ compensation gives weekly payments to an employee’s surviving dependents when he or she dies as a consequence of a work-related accident or sickness. The amount received by each person will be determined by their connection to the dead employee and the number of dependents, as well as the weekly restrictions for TTD payments. The total amount of weekly benefits awarded to all dependents cannot exceed two-thirds of the deceased employee’s average weekly income. Hawaii workers’ compensation also covers funeral and burial costs (up to ten times the maximum weekly TTD payout) (up to five times the maximum weekly benefit). (Hawaii Revised Statutes 386-41 (2020).)
Obtaining Assistance in Collecting Workers’ Compensation Benefits
Navigating the worker’s compensation system may be difficult, particularly if you are suffering with the consequences of your injuries and receiving medical care. To earn the benefits you deserve, you must seek proper medical treatment, follow your doctor’s advice, and demonstrate that you are ready to return to work when you are able. However, if the insurance company denies treatment or benefits, you should seek the assistance of a knowledgeable workers’ compensation attorney. (Learn more about when you should hire a lawyer for your workers’ compensation case.)