We’re going strong through the first month of 2022, but I just have to ask: Have you updated all your pay rates for the new year?

Gregory Grinberg

If not, here are a few things to keep in mind.

The state average weekly wage increase for 2022 as compared to 2021 is 13.5213%, which means that if you have a file with a life pension that needs a cost-of-living adjustment, make sure you’ve updated your pay rate.

By the same token, total temporary disability rates have gone up as well, with the minimum going from $203.44 to $230.95 and the maximum going from $1,356.31 to $1,539.71. If you are paying maximum TD more than two years after the date of injury, make sure to update the rate as well.

The mileage reimbursement rate has also increased, from 56 cents to 58.5 cents.

The minimum wage has also increased, from $15 per hour for employers with more than 25 employees, and $14 for employers with 25 or fewer employees. Accordingly, if you are paying TD based on minimum wage and the date of injury was more than two years ago, you may want to adjust your TD rate accordingly.

Senate Bill 331 has taken effect, meaning any clauses restricting disclosure of various bad acts by employers — specifically harassment, discrimination or retaliation — are rendered unenforceable going forward. Does your settlement paperwork come with a resignation letter that limits what the applicant can say about his or her employer? Time to review that paperwork for statutory compliance.

Assembly Bill 286 was signed into law on Oct. 5, 2021, and regulates various aspects of the food delivery industry, including prohibiting the food delivery platform from keeping any portion of the tips given to the delivery workers or food facility.  That means that it might be time to recalculate average weekly wages, since tips previously kept by your favorite food delivery app may now have to be paid to the applicant instead.

And, of course, there are those new Workers' Compensation Appeals Board regulations mentioned earlier. 

Now, you might be thinking to yourself: What about COVID? Well, dear readers, as you know, I have a severe golden retriever complex: Nothing makes me happier than making people happy. But even I can’t keep up with the changing rules on COVID-19. 

Remember when we were supposed to quarantine for 14 days? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now wants the infected but symptom-free to return to work after five days.

And what about SB 1159 and all those COVID-19 presumptions? Those will stay in effect until the end of 2022 unless some legislative action is taken, so there’s nothing new there.

Gregory Grinberg is managing partner of Gale, Sutow & Associates’ S.F. Bay South office and a certified specialist in workers’ compensation law. This post is reprinted with permission from Grinberg’s WCDefenseCA blog.