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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation (Income
Maintenance) Amendment Bill 2009
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation
Act 1986.
Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1 Short
title
2 Commencement
3 Amendment provisions
Part 2—Amendment of Workers Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1986
4 Amendment of section 4—Average
weekly earnings
5 Amendment of section 35—Preliminary
6 Amendment of
section 35A—Weekly payments over designated periods
7 Amendment of
section 35B—Weekly payments after expiry of designated periods—no
work incapacity
8 Amendment of section 35C—Weekly payments after expiry
of designated periods—current work capacity
9 Amendment of section
36—Discontinuance of weekly payments
10 Amendment of section
43—Lump sum compensation
11 Amendment of section 43A—Assessment
of impairment
Schedule 1—Transitional
provisions
1 Interpretation
2 Weekly payments
3 Discontinuance
of weekly payments
4 Lump sum compensation
5 Assessment of
impairment
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation
(Income Maintenance) Amendment Act 2009.
This Act will come into operation on 1 March 2010.
In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a
specified Act amends the Act so specified.
Part 2—Amendment
of Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation
Act 1986
4—Amendment of
section 4—Average weekly earnings
(1) Section 4(15)(b)—delete "prescribed amount" wherever occurring
and substitute, in each case:
minimum remuneration standard
(2) Section 4(16)—after paragraph (a) insert:
(ab) a reference to the minimum remuneration standard is a reference to
the national minimum wage for an adult working ordinary hours applying under
Part 2-6 of the Fair Work Act 2009 of the Commonwealth at the
relevant date, adjusted, if relevant, on a proportional basis to take into
account any case where the worker was not in full-time employment over the
period used to determine the average weekly earnings of the worker;
and
5—Amendment of
section 35—Preliminary
(1) Section 35(8)(a)—delete "13 weeks" and substitute:
52 weeks
(2) Section 35(8)(b)—delete "13 weeks" and substitute:
52 weeks
(3) Section 35(8)(c)—delete paragraph (c)
6—Amendment of
section 35A—Weekly payments over designated periods
(1) Section 35A(2)(a)—delete "90%" and substitute:
80%
(2) Section 35A(2)(b)—delete "90%" and substitute:
80%
(3) Section 35A(3)—delete subsection (3)
(4) Section 35A(4)(b)—delete "despite the disability" and
substitute:
and that the Corporation can demonstrate is reasonably available to the
worker in his or her particular circumstances
7—Amendment of
section 35B—Weekly payments after expiry of designated periods—no
work incapacity
(1) Section 35B(1)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
(2) Section 35B(2)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
(3) Section 35B(4)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
(4) Section 35B(4)—delete "section 35A(3)" and
substitute:
section 35A(2)
(5) Section 35B(5)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
8—Amendment of
section 35C—Weekly payments after expiry of designated
periods—current work capacity
(1) Section 35C(1)—delete "section 35A(3)(b)" and
substitute:
section 35A(2)(b)
(2) Section 35C(1)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
(3) Section 35C(2)—delete subsection (2) and
substitute:
(2) The Corporation is to determine that the worker's entitlement to
weekly payments under this Division does not cease, as contemplated by
subsection (1), if the Corporation is satisfied—
(a) that the worker is in employment and that because of the compensable
disability the worker is incapable of undertaking further or additional
employment or work which would increase the worker's current weekly earnings;
or
(b) that the worker is in employment and that the worker is taking
reasonable steps to secure further or additional employment or work up to his or
her level of work capacity.
(4) Section 35C(3)(b)—delete "subsection (2) on the ground that
the Corporation is not satisfied under the requirements of that subsection" and
substitute:
paragraph (a) of subsection (2) on the ground that the
Corporation is not satisfied under the requirements of that paragraph
(5) Section 35C—after subsection (5) insert:
(6) Furthermore, the Corporation may not determine that a worker's
entitlement to weekly payments under this Division will cease at the end of the
designated entitlement period under section 35A or at the expiry of an
entitlement under section 35B (as the case may be), including after taking
into account the operation of a preceding subsection, unless or until the
Corporation can demonstrate that it has—
(a) taken reasonable steps to find suitable employment for the worker over
a reasonable period of time; and
(b) taken reasonable steps to prepare the worker for a return to
employment up to his or her level of work capacity (including, if relevant, by
providing reasonable access to retraining).
9—Amendment of
section 36—Discontinuance of weekly payments
(1) Section 36(3a)(ba)—delete "or the second entitlement
period"
(2) Section 36(3a)(bb)—delete "third" and substitute:
second
(3) Section 36(4) to (5c)—delete subsections (4) to (5c)
(inclusive) and substitute:
(4) If a worker lodges a notice of dispute disputing a decision by the
Corporation to discontinue or reduce weekly payments under this section within
1 month after the worker receives notice of the decision—
(a) the operation of the decision is suspended, and the weekly payments
must continue or, if the decision has already taken effect, be reinstated (to
their previous level), until the dispute first comes before a conciliator under
Part 6A; and
(b) the Tribunal may further suspend the operation of the decision (from
time to time) to allow a reasonable opportunity for resolution of the dispute by
conciliation or judicial determination (as the case requires) without prejudice
to the worker's financial position in the meantime.
(5) However, if the dispute is resolved by the Corporation's decision on
reconsideration of the disputed decision, the suspension terminates at the end
of the period allowed for the worker to express dissatisfaction with the result
of the reconsideration.
(5a) If the dispute is ultimately resolved in favour of the Corporation,
the Corporation may, at the Corporation's discretion (but subject to the
regulations)—
(a) recover amounts that were paid because of suspension of the operation
of the Corporation's decision from the worker as a debt; or
(b) set off the amounts against liabilities of the Corporation to make
payments to the worker under this Act.
(4) Section 36(15) to (17)—delete subsections (15) to (17)
(inclusive)
10—Amendment of
section 43—Lump sum compensation
Section 43(4)—delete subsection (4)
11—Amendment of
section 43A—Assessment of impairment
Section 43A(4)—after paragraph (c) insert:
(ca) must provide a worker with an opportunity to choose a medical
practitioner to undertake any assessment of impairment from a panel of at least
3 medical practitioners who hold an accreditation for the purposes of this
section; and
Schedule
1—Transitional provisions
In this Schedule—
principal Act means the Workers Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1986;
relevant day means the day on which this Act comes into
operation.
(1) The amendments effected by sections 4 to 8 (inclusive) apply
to workers who suffer compensable disabilities on or after the relevant
day.
(2) In addition, the amendments effected by those sections extend to
workers who suffered compensable disabilities on or after 1 July 2008
so as to increase any entitlement to weekly payments under the principal Act
from the relevant day to the extent provided by those amendments (but not so as
to provide for any retrospective entitlement).
3—Discontinuance
of weekly payments
The amendments effected by section 9 of this Act apply in relation to
any discontinuance or reduction of weekly payments effected by a notice of the
WorkCover Corporation of South Australia given to a worker under
section 36(3) of the principal Act on or after the relevant day.
The amendment effected by section 10 of this Act applies to workers
who suffer compensable disabilities on or after the relevant day.
The amendment effected by section 11 of this Act applies in relation
to any assessment of impairment initiated by the WorkCover Corporation of
South Australia at any time after the expiration of 1 month from the
relevant day.