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WORKERS REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION ACT 1986 - SECT 35

This legislation has been repealed.

WORKERS REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION ACT 1986 - SECT 35

35—Preliminary

        (1)         Subject to this Act, where a worker suffers a compensable injury that results in incapacity for work, the worker is entitled to weekly payments in respect of that injury in accordance with this Division.

        (2)         Weekly payments are not payable under this Division in respect of a period of incapacity for work falling after the date on which the worker reaches retirement age.

        (3)         However, if a worker who is within 2 years of retirement age or above retirement age becomes incapacitated for work while still in employment, weekly payments are payable for a period of incapacity falling within 2 years after the commencement of the incapacity.

        (4)         A worker is not entitled under this Division to receive, in respect of 2 or more injuries, weekly payments in excess of the worker's notional weekly earnings.

        (5)         If a liability to make weekly payments is redeemed, the worker is taken, for the purposes of this Division, to be receiving the weekly payments that would have been payable if there had been no redemption.

        (6)         Subject to subsection (7)



(and any other relevant provision of this Act) a reference in this Division to a worker making "every reasonable effort to return to work in suitable employment includes any reasonable period during which—

            (a)         the worker is waiting for a response to a request for suitable employment made by the worker and received by the employer; and

            (b)         if the employer's response is that suitable employment may or will be provided at some time, the worker is waiting for suitable employment to commence; and

            (c)         if the employer's response is that suitable employment cannot be provided at some time, the worker is waiting for a response to requests for suitable employment from other employers; and

            (d)         the worker is waiting for the commencement of a rehabilitation and return to work plan, after approval has been given.

        (7)         A worker must not be treated as making "every reasonable effort to return to work in suitable employment for the purposes of this Division if the worker

            (a)         has refused to have an assessment made of the worker's employment prospects; or

            (b)         has refused or failed to take all reasonably necessary steps to obtain suitable employment; or

            (c)         has refused or failed to accept an offer of suitable employment from any person; or

            (d)         has refused or failed to participate in a rehabilitation program or a rehabilitation and return to work plan.

        (8)         In this Division—

            (a)         "first entitlement period" means an aggregate period not exceeding 13 weeks (whether consecutive or not) in respect of which a worker has an incapacity for work and is entitled to the payment of compensation under this Act on the account of that incapacity;

            (b)         "second entitlement period" means an aggregate period not exceeding 13 weeks (whether consecutive or not) commencing after the end of the first entitlement period, in respect of which a worker has an incapacity for work and is entitled to the payment of compensation under this Act on account of that incapacity;

            (c)         "third entitlement period" means an aggregate period not exceeding 104 weeks (whether consecutive or not), commencing after the end of the second entitlement period, in respect of which a worker has an incapacity for work and is entitled to the payment of compensation under this Act on the account of that incapacity;

            (d)         "retirement age" means—

                  (i)         if there is a normal retirement age for workers in employment of the kind from which the worker's injury arose—that age of retirement; or

                  (ii)         the age of 65 years,

whichever is the lesser;

            (e)         a reference to weekly earnings, or current weekly earnings, is a reference to weekly earnings exclusive of prescribed allowances.