Workers' Compensation Leave Benefits

Workers’ Compensation benefits are determined by the State Workers’ Compensation law and extended by union contacts and administered and paid by the New York State Insurance Fund. The New York State Department of Civil Service and The Governor's Office of Employee Relations oversee the attendance and leave and OSC monitors the supplement payments and other payments to NYS employees.

The DOA (date of accident) determines the Workers’ Compensation benefit. For example, if an employee had a workers’ comp injury as a correction officer, but is now PEF, the employee’s benefit would follow the security benefit. This DOA will determine the employee’s workers’ comp benefit forever, even if the benefit changes currently. The employee will be paid according to the benefit in effect on the DOA, including the weekly benefit established.

Placing an Employee on Workers’ Comp

The Action Reason codes to place employees on Workers’ Comp have been amended. They are:

• PLA/WCF – employee is receiving full pay while charging accruals for the first 5 days or out on workers’ compensation using the benefit or charging accruals for workers’ comp absences.
• PLA/SWC – employee has used all accruals and is using sick leave half pay while out on workers’ compensation.
• LOA/WPS – employee is covered by the Statutory benefit and is eligible for contractual supplemental pay if SIF deems the employee over 50% disabled.
• LOA/WDL – employees is covered by the Statutory benefit in the Unified Court System and is not in a UCS security bargaining unit. This leave code was also used for CSEA represented employees for accidents prior to July 1, 2004.
• STO/WCL – Short term workers compensation disability for Management Confidential employees enrolled in the Income Protection Plan (IPP).
• LTO/WCL – Long term workers compensation disability for Management Confidential employees enrolled in the Income Protection Plan (IPP).
• Please refer to Bulletin 1366 for further information on PayServ leave codes.
  
  

SECURITY

• While on the benefit, 6 months full pay – no charge to accruals – PayServ code – PLA/WCF
• After 6 month benefit, charge to accruals – PayServ code – PLA/WCF
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
• Sick leave half pay, if employee has eligibility – PayServ code – PLA/SWC
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RWC to return the employee to the payroll from the workers’ comp leave for sick leave at half pay
• Sick leave no pay, if still out after sick leave eligibility is exhausted – PayServ code – LOA/SKL
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RLV to return the employee to the payroll from the unpaid sick leave
• 1 year benefit
  

MANAGEMENT CONFIDENTIAL

• The employee may charge the first 5 days and any further absences to accruals – PayServ code – PLA/WCF
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
• If not enrolled in IPP (Income Protection Plan), after the accruals are used, the employee uses available sick leave half pay - use PayServ code PLA/SWC.
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RWC to return the employee to the payroll from the workers’ comp leave for sick leave at half pay
  • If still out after sick leave eligibility is exhausted – PayServ code – LOA/WDL
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RDL to return the employee to the payroll from the unpaid workers’ comp leave
• If the employee elects to use the IPP benefit– if the employee charges accruals - use PayServ Code PLA/WCF
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
  • After accruals employee should be placed on the IPP using -PayServ code STO/WCL or LTO/WCL
  • Use the Action/Reason combination RFL/RLV to return the employee to the payroll from the IPP benefit.
• 1 year benefit

Note: For information regarding the IPP program, which is governed by Civil Service and the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations, please contact Civil Service Employee Benefits Division at 518-473-3496 or 800-833-4344. The Governor’s Office of Employee Relations can be reached at 518-473-7233.

CSEA\PEF\HOUSING & RENT REGULATION\MILITARY AND NAVAL

• Charge first 5 days to accruals – PayServ code PLA/WCF
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
• Statutory benefit, State Insurance Fund starts to pay employee after first 5 days of absence
• The contractual Supplement benefit of 60% of biweekly salary is paid by OSC for periods of time when the employee is over 50% disabled as determined by SIF - PayServ code LOA/WPS
• If employee is below 50% disabled as determined by SIF, the employee remains on LOA/WPS with no supplement
• Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RPS to return the employee to the payroll from the workers’ comp supplement leave
• Supplement max is for 9 months, 195 days.
• If the employee uses the supplement max (195 days), the employee remains on the LOA/WPS code
• 1 year benefit
  
  

UNIFIED COURT SYSTEM –

• Non Security Employees -
  • Charge first 5 days – PayServ Code PLA/WCF
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
  • Statutory benefit, State Insurance Fund starts to pay employee after first 5 days – PayServ Code – LOA/WDL
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RDL to return the employee to the payroll from the unpaid workers’ comp leave

• UCS Security Employees –
  • Use PayServ Code PLA/WCF while charging accruals and using the benefit for “in the line of duty” injuries. For other absences refer to non-security benefit.
  • Use the Action/Reason Combination RFL/RCF to return the employee to the payroll from the paid workers’ comp leave
• 1 year benefit

HOURLY EMPLOYEES

• An hourly employee is only eligible for workers comp if they are covered by time and attendance rules.
• If they are covered by T&A, than they can charge the first 5 days and after that are put on the appropriate leave code in accordance with the bargaining unit in effect on the DOA. Refer to above benefits for further information.
• If not eligible for T&A, leave employee on payroll, do nothing.

MONITOR HEALTH AND SAFETY – INCIDENT/INJURY DETAILS

In order to put an employee out on any of the above benefits, an incident/injury detail panel needs to be entered into PayServ for each code above and for each date the employee is going off the payroll. The path to this panel in PayServ is, Workforce Monitoring/Health and Safety/Obtain Incident Information/Incident Details.

• For example, a CSEA employee has an accident on 5/14/2015, and is charging 5 days of accruals from 5/15/15-5/21/15, you would need to enter an incident/injury panel using the date of 5/15/15 to place the employee on the Paid Leave of Absence Workers Comp Leave Full (WCF). After the 5 days, the employee needs to be removed from the payroll on 5/22/15, and placed on the Workers’ Comp PT Supplement Benefit. Another incident/injury detail panel is needed to place the employee on the Workers’ Comp for this date also.

Rows would then be entered on Job Data to reflect the workers’ comp leave in the employee history.

• A row of 5/15/2015 with the Action/Reason of PLA/WCF would be entered
• A row for 5/22/15 with an Action/Reason of LOA/WPS would be entered.

For step by step instructions to enter the incident/injury details, please refer to the presentation from the 2014 Fall Conference.

Bureau of State Payroll Services payroll@osc.ny.gov