Jump ahead to learn:
- Is New York Workers’ Compensation insurance required?
- How does NY Workers’ Compensation work?
- New York Workers’ Comp coverage
- NY State Workers’ Comp death benefits
- How much is New York State Workers’ Compensation?
- What if you don’t have NY Workers’ Compensation insurance?
- Who is exempt from NY Workers’ Comp?
- How NEXT helps New York small business owners
Is New York Workers’ Compensation insurance required?
According to the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board, virtually all New York employers must carry workers’ compensation insurance. This rule applies to full-time and part-time employees, as well as family members employed by the company and regularly-scheduled domestic workers.
Business owners can comply with the law by either:
- Buying workers’ compensation coverage from a private insurance company such as NEXT.
- Enrolling through the New York State Insurance Fund (NYSIF).
- Creating a self-insured workers’ compensation program for their employees.
How does NY Workers’ Compensation work?
Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to support employees who suffer work-related injuries or illnesses. You, the business owner, can also be covered if you have owner’s coverage with your policy.
Typically, NY workers’ compensation insurance includes coverage for:
- Emergency treatment and medical care expenses.
- Lost wages income benefits.
- Retraining if you can no longer do your job.
- Permanent injury benefits.
- Death benefits and survivor benefits.
A key feature of New York’s workers’ compensation system is its no-fault nature. This means that employees do not need to prove fault to receive benefits.
If an employee gets injured at work, they should report it to their employer and file a claim with the NYS Workers’ Compensation Board.
If you hold a workers’ comp policy with NEXT we strive to resolve every claim quickly. Learn more about our claims process and how our claims advocates will work with you after an employee illness or injury.
New York Workers’ Comp coverage
In New York, employees are entitled to lost wage benefits if their injury or illness prevents them from working for more than seven days or reduces their hours. These benefits are paid whether they’re totally or partially disabled.
Payments should start within 18 days of the workplace injury or 10 days after the business owner is made aware of the injury, depending on which occurs later. If you continue to pay your employee’s wages, your employee may not receive workers’ comp benefits from the insurance carrier; instead, you’ll be reimbursed for the wages.
Two factors help calculate disability benefits, including:
- Two-thirds of the difference between your current earnings and your pre-injury average weekly wage.
- The degree of disability determined by medical reports. Generally, the degrees of disability range from total (100%), marked (75%), moderate (50%), or mild (25%) and various levels in between. Anything less than a total disability is called a partial disability.
Weekly workers’ compensation benefits have minimum and maximum limits that adjust periodically, with a minimum of $275 and $325.
There are four disability classifications in New York State:
- Temporary total disability. Employees cannot work and earn wages, but only on a temporary basis. They’re entitled to the full allowable wage benefit.
- Temporary partial disability. Employees have temporarily lost some ability to work and earn full wages.
- Permanent total disability. The employee’s wage-earning capacity is permanently and totally lost. There is no limit on the number of weeks payable with a permanent disability.
- Permanent partial disability. Part of the employee’s wage-earning capacity has been permanently lost.
NY State Workers’ Comp death benefits
If an injured worker dies from a covered job injury or illness, their spouse and dependents are entitled to weekly payments. These death benefits amount to two-thirds of the deceased worker’s average weekly wage from the year prior to the accident, subject to some limits.
If there are no eligible survivors, the deceased worker’s parents or estate may receive a payment of $50,000.
Additionally, a workers’ compensation policy usually covers funeral or memorial expenses, capped at $12,500 in specific counties (Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester) and $10,500 in other counties across the state.
