Opinion ID: 3150549
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Compensation for Partial Incapacity

Text: By contrast, Code § 65.2-502(A) governs cases of partial incapacity. [W]hen the incapacity for work resulting from the injury is partial, the employer shall pay, or cause to be paid, as hereinafter provided, to the injured employee during such incapacity a weekly compensation equal to 66 2/3 percent of the difference between his 6 average weekly wages before the injury and the average weekly wages which he is able to earn thereafter, but not more than 100 percent of the average weekly wage of the Commonwealth as defined in § 65.2-500. As the statute indicates, employers are required in such cases to pay two-thirds of “the difference” between the partially disabled worker’s pre- and post-injury wages. Consequently, Code § 65.2-502 presumes that where an injured worker is only partially disabled, that employee can continue working either on restricted duty or in an altogether new job. As a result, economic loss is the appropriate test for the compensation award in cases of partial incapacity whereas loss of earning capacity is the proper test for such awards in cases of total incapacity.