Minnesota Statute § 176.02 – Application To Employers & Employees

Here is what Minn. Stat. § 176.021 means for injured Minnesota workers.

1) Who is covered and when the employer must pay

Almost all Minnesota employers and employees are covered by workers’ compensation. If you are hurt at work or develop an illness because of your job, your employer must pay workers’ compensation benefits as the law requires.

You do not have to prove your employer did anything wrong. You do have to prove that your injury arose out of your work and happened in the course of your employment.

2) Limited exceptions to coverage

The employer is not liable if the injury was intentionally self inflicted or if your intoxication was the direct cause of the injury.

The employer has the burden to prove one of these exceptions applies.

3) What level of proof is required

Disputed facts are decided using a preponderance of the evidence. That means your proof must be more convincing than the other side’s proof.

Legal questions are decided in an even handed way under the overall purposes of the workers’ compensation law.

4) Who is responsible if the business fails or changes hands

The employer’s responsibility continues even if the business is insolvent, assigned to creditors, or in bankruptcy, to the extent federal law allows.

People running the business during those times are bound by the obligation to pay benefits.

5) When payments must start and how ongoing payments work

Employers must start paying benefits on time as the law requires. You do not need a signed agreement or a court order to get payments started.

Wage loss benefits should be paid as close as possible to your usual pay intervals. Medical, burial, and other one time benefits are handled separately.

6) Permanent Partial Disability reports and timing

If there is any Permanent Partial Disability (PPD), the insurer must share the medical report that supports the PPD payment and any other medical reports it has that show a PPD rating. The insurer must also say if the payment is for a minimum rating or the final rating.

If the final rating is uncertain, the insurer should pay for the minimum rating that can be supported now, then pay more if a higher rating is later supported. You must allow the insurer to obtain any PPD rating reports you have or know about.

7) How different benefits fit together

PPD pays you for permanent loss of function. It is separate from wage loss benefits. It is paid in addition to other benefits, but not at the same time as Temporary Total Disability. The timing and coordination follow section 176.101.

Impairment compensation can be paid at the same time as Permanent Total Disability, as provided in section 176.101. An employer or insurer cannot take credit for PPD against Temporary Total Disability or against future Permanent Total Disability.

8) When your right to benefits becomes fixed

Your right to Temporary Total, Temporary Partial, or Permanent Total Disability payments vests when the disability can be determined. If you pass away before payment is made, these vested benefits belong to your dependents or, if none, to your legal heirs.

Your right to PPD vests when the PPD can be determined, as long as you live at least 30 days after the date of injury. If you die while receiving economic recovery or impairment compensation, additional payments follow the rules in section 176.101. Disability ratings must be based on objective medical evidence.

9) How PPD is paid based on your work status

• If you return to work, PPD is paid at the same intervals as your Temporary Total checks were paid.
• If your Temporary Total checks have stopped and you have not returned to work, PPD is still paid on the same schedule as your Temporary Total checks were paid.
• If Temporary Total stopped because you are now on Permanent Total, or because you retired, PPD is paid on the same schedule as your Temporary Total checks were paid.
• If you finished a rehabilitation plan, your employer does not offer suitable work, and you cannot find suitable work, PPD is paid on the same schedule as your Temporary Total checks were paid.

10) Getting PPD while you are on TPD

If you have returned to work for at least six months and, if required, completed your rehabilitation plan, you can receive PPD even if you are also receiving Temporary Partial Disability. This is a procedural rule and applies no matter your date of injury.

This coordination prevents unnecessary delays and allows you to receive impairment payments while you earn partial wages.

11) You cannot sign away your rights for less

Any agreement to accept less than the benefits provided by law is void. You cannot legally be forced to take less than what the statute requires.

If you are presented with a document that reduces your benefits below what the law allows, get legal advice before signing.

12) Extra payments for public employees with leave banks

Public employees can, in some cases, receive additional payments from accumulated vacation, sick leave, or overtime, as long as the total weekly payments do not exceed their regular weekly wage.

Collective bargaining agreements or other plans can also provide extra payments, even if not tied to leave banks, but the total still cannot exceed the regular weekly wage.

13) If a city charter has its own pay system

If a home rule city charter would pay more than workers’ compensation for the same period, the employee can collect workers’ compensation and also receive the charter’s excess amount.

If the charter would pay the same or less, the employee collects only under the workers’ compensation law.

14) Offsets for public officers and certain public disability pensions

If you are a public officer and keep receiving your office salary while also on Temporary Total, Temporary Partial, or Permanent Total, the amount of that salary for the same period is deducted from your workers’ compensation checks.

Certain disability benefits from public retirement systems must also be deducted from workers’ compensation. These deductions do not create a right to supplemental benefits.

15) Rounding rule

Employers or insurers may round payments to the nearest dollar. If they choose to do this, they must do it consistently for all payments.

16) Injuries at employer recreational and wellness events

Injuries during voluntary recreational or wellness activities that are sponsored by the employer are generally not covered. Examples include company softball games, fitness challenges, parties, or picnics.

If you were ordered or assigned to participate, this exclusion does not apply and the injury may be covered.

What this means for you

The law puts the responsibility on the employer and its insurer to pay benefits on time, share key medical reports, and coordinate benefit types correctly. If your checks are delayed, underpaid, or stopped, or if the insurer refuses to recognize your PPD, you have rights.

We can review your case, correct the rate, and challenge improper denials so you receive the full benefits you are owed.