Self-insured employers will need to send an updated SIF5 to the Department reflecting the change. The employer should probably also ask for an order stating the calculation of wages and time loss rate at that time. Workers' compensation payors will need to coordinate with HR personnel or a union to determine whether and when health care benefits are continued after a person misses work. The opinion of the Court of Appeals raised the specter that every benefit that needed to be replaced when a person was off work would be included in the calculation of wages. Claimants with open claims in which no final order exists that sets forth the calculation of wages may now claim that their employers owe compensation due to the erroneous calculation of past time loss payments.
Employers can expect to receive a flood of requests from savvy claimants and their lawyers.
Reserves should be adjusted accordingly. It is not known whether the Department will require recalculation in every claim that lacks a final order setting forth the time loss rate with an explanation of the wage calculation. Situations will differ from a factual standpoint so consultation with an attorney may be helpful with regard to particular claims. The Court recognized that the applicable statute does not indicate whether shift differential pay should be considered in determining the amount of a person's wages. However, the Court used a monthly wage figure and assumed that monthly wages must take shift differential into account.