Under the state's industrial insurance laws, workers who, in the course of employment, are injured or disabled from an occupational disease are entitled to benefits. The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) administers the program. Depending on the disability, workers receive medical, temporary time-loss, and vocational rehabilitation benefits, as well as benefits for permanent disabilities.
When death results from the work-related injury, the surviving spouse receives a pension until the spouse remarries. Dependent children of workers who die from a work-related injury are also entitled to benefits, as are other dependents. The beneficiary must submit an application for benefits within one year from the date of the worker's death due to injury. The amount of a monthly survivor benefit varies depending upon whether there is a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, children, or other dependents. For example, a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner may receive 60 percent of the wages at the time of injury up to the maximum level allowed by law. If the worker had minor children, an additional 2 percent per child is paid, up to an additional maximum of 10 percent.
A transportation network company (TNC), is a company that uses a digital network to connect passengers to drivers for prearranged rides. L&I assesses TNCs premiums for workers' compensation coverage applicable to drivers during the time the driver is traveling from a dispatch location to pick up a passenger and while the driver is transporting the passenger. Workers' compensation coverage does not apply to drivers at other times.
Employers must obtain industrial insurance either through the State Fund administered by L&I, or, if qualified, may self-insure. For State Fund employers, L&I must classify all occupations or industries in accordance with their degree of hazard and fix basic rates of premium which shall be:
L&I must formulate and adopt rules governing the method of premium calculation and collection and providing for a rating system consistent with recognized principles of workers' compensation insurance which shall be designed to stimulate and encourage accident prevention and to facilitate collection. L&I may annually, or at such other times as it deems necessary to achieve these objectives, readjust rates.
L&I rules provide that premiums vary by:
Death benefits are payable when a TNC driver's death results from an injury occurring while the driver is:
The statute of limitations begins on the TNC driver's death. L&I may adopt rules regarding these benefits.
The cost of the death benefits must be included in the consideration of rate increases for the risk class and not attributed to a single TNC. The cost may not be included in the calculation of any individual TNC experience modification factor.
L&I must conduct or contract out for a study using administrative and other available data and report to the legislature by July 1, 2029. The study shall include, but is not limited to, the number and frequency of TNC drivers filing claims with the department who are victims of crime while connected to work through a TNC's digital network, whether those claims were accepted or denied, and if denied, the reason for the denial. The study shall not include remote workers working from their homes.
Legislative intent is provided. The Legislature honors the memory of the following TNC drivers who died while working in Washington: Cherno Ceesay, Mohamed Kediye, Mohamadou Kabba, Amare Geda, and Abdikadir Gedi Shariif.
The committee recommended a different version of the bill than what was heard. No public hearing was held.
N/A
N/A