Disability Insurance Law in New Jersey
- The Division of Temporary Disability Insurance must receive a claim within 30 days of the first day of disability. Late claims may result in the forfeiture of all or part of the benefits. Workers should submit a "Claim for Disability Benefits" Form DS-1, available from unions, employers or by calling or writing the division. Workers must mail the completed form to the division. According to New Jersey law, an employer must provide the form, including wage information for the worker, to the division and to the requesting employee.
- A base week is the equivalent of a calendar week during which an employee earns at least $145, or 20 times the New Jersey minimum hourly rate. To receive benefits, an employee must have a minimum of 20 base weeks of earnings as a covered employee in New Jersey or earnings of at least $7,300 as a covered employee during the prior 52 weeks.
- The Division of Temporary Disability Insurance calculates the average weekly wage for all New Jersey workers. The maximum a worker can receive in temporary disability benefits is 53 percent of that average wage. For 2011, the maximum benefit is $559. Claimants receive two-thirds of their personal average weekly earnings up to the maximum benefit. Total benefits for each separate disability cannot exceed the lesser of one-third of the worker's earnings as a covered employee during the past year or 26 weeks of benefits.
- A seven-day waiting period applies, but may be compensable if the worker receives disability benefits for at least part of the three succeeding weeks. The disability must begin while the employee was an employee of a covered employer or within 14 days of leaving the employer. Claimants must be receiving care from a licensed physician, chiropractor, dentist, psychologist or certified midwife. If the claimant would be ineligible for unemployment because of gross misconduct or a strike, he is also ineligible to file a new claim for temporary disability. Government workers must exhaust all sick leave accumulated before they can receive benefits.
- The federal government considers temporary disability payments as third-party sick pay. As such, they are subject to federal income tax, Medicare and Social Security deductions for the employee and federal unemployment, Social Security and Medicate taxes for the employer.
- Temporary disability insurance is to cover illnesses and injuries that are not work-related. Benefits do not apply for injuries that are self-inflicted or occur during the commission of a crime. Under New Jersey's program, pregnancy qualifies for temporary disability benefits.