A number of changes to the Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation Act were signed into law in April.

One significant change affects the way wage-loss benefits are calculated for part-time workers — employees who work fewer than 35 hours per week.

Under the new law, these workers’ hours will be expanded to 40 hours per week for the purpose of calculating wages if they are also employed by another employer, or they have worked part-time for less than 12 months before the date of injury. An employer can rebut this wage expansion if they can show proof that the employee chose to restrict their hours to part-time.

For other part-time workers, the average weekly wage will be calculated as the greater of:

• The actual average weekly earnings for the prior 52 calendar weeks prior to the injury, excepting any weeks they didn’t work, or
• Their hourly rate at the time of injury multiplied by the hours they were scheduled to work that week

Other changes signed into law in April include:

• An employee who is undergoing an independent medical examination required by an employer and workers’ compensation insurer may now have an observer present at the exam.
• The maximum weekly permanent partial disability benefit increased from $362 to $415 for injuries occurring on or after April 10, 2022. It will increase again to $430 for injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2023. This is the first increase in the rate since 2017.

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