Province strengthens retirement benefits for workers with a workplace injury or illness
The province is taking action to better support workers who have experienced a workplace injury or illness by proposing strengthened retirement benefits under the workers’ compensation system in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Bill 10, An Act to Amend the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Act, 2022, is designed to change how the retirement benefit is calculated.
If the bill is approved by the House of Assembly, Temporary Earnings Loss (TEL) benefits beyond 24 months would be included when calculating a worker’s retirement benefit. Currently, only Extended Earnings Loss benefits are counted. The change would apply retroactively to Jan. 1, 2019.
If passed, 3,100 workers who have or had a WorkplaceNL claim would be eligible for a one-time increase to their retirement benefit, now or when they turn 65, and more than 700 of these workers would receive a retroactive lump sum payment. While the amount a worker receives depends on their TEL benefits, on average, that increase would be about $5,800 per worker.
This proposed change does not affect benefit eligibility and is strictly about how retirement benefits are calculated. The benefit is not taxable and will be provided to a worker’s dependents if the worker passes away before receiving the benefit. WorkplaceNL’s Injury Fund, which is in a strong financial position, would cover the estimated $14.3 million cost of this change. The Injury Fund is funded by employers and investment returns. The 2026 average assessment rate paid by employers would not change as a result of the proposed legislation.
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