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How Does Changing to Light-Duty Work Affect Workers’ Compensation Benefits?

August 11, 2025

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In 2023, nearly 85,000 Ohio workers were injured on the job. More than half of them had to take time off, switch roles, or work under new restrictions, and for many, that meant a light-duty assignment.

Light-duty work is typically offered when you’re cleared to return but can’t perform your regular job in full. It allows you to stay employed while following your doctor’s restrictions.

However, accepting a modified role can also affect your workers’ compensation benefits, potentially reducing your income and limiting the additional support you might be eligible for.

Here’s what you need to know about how light-duty work impacts your compensation and how a skilled Cleveland workers’ compensation lawyer can help protect the benefits you deserve.

What Is Light-Duty Work?

Light-duty work is a job or tasks that match an injured worker’s medical restrictions. These duties are usually less physically demanding than the worker’s regular position.

Examples of modified assignments include:

  • Filing paperwork or organizing supplies
  • Answering phones or handling basic customer service
  • Data entry, inventory tracking, or light supervision
  • Monitoring equipment or assisting with inspections
  • Other tasks that avoid lifting, bending, or extended standing

Employers must follow your medical restrictions and provide reasonable accommodations to ensure a safe return to the workplace.

For instance, a healthcare worker recovering from a shoulder injury might be given a seated role that avoids lifting or patient handling. In construction, an injured worker may be assigned to planning tasks in an office trailer to prevent exposure to heavy equipment or uneven ground.

When Might a Worker in Ohio Be Offered Light-Duty?

Injured employees must follow up regularly with their treating physician as part of the workers’ compensation process. After a period of recovery, the doctor will reassess the worker’s condition and submit an updated report to the employer.

Here’s what usually happens next:

  • The doctor updates the MEDCO-14 form with any new restrictions.
  • The employer reviews those restrictions to determine if modified work is available.
  • If a role is a good fit, the employer makes a written offer that outlines the light-duty position.
  • The injured worker then reviews the offer and decides whether to accept it.

This process helps determine whether returning to work is possible within medical limits.

How Light-Duty Changes Your Workers’ Comp Pay

Accepting light-duty work changes both the type and amount of workers’ compensation benefits you may receive. Once you begin a modified role:

  • Temporary Total Disability Stops: Once your doctor approves a return to any kind of work, including light-duty, temporary total compensation (TT) benefits end. TT typically pays two-thirds of your average weekly wage while you are unable to work.
  • Wage Loss Compensation May Apply: If your light-duty job pays less than your pre-injury wages, you may be eligible for working wage loss compensation. This benefit covers two-thirds of the difference between your pre-injury and current earnings, for up to 200 weeks.

For example, if your pre-injury wages were $800 per week, TT benefits would pay you $533 while you’re completely off work.

You return to a light-duty job that pays $500 per week. In this case, TT benefits stop, but wage loss compensation may add about $198 to bridge the gap.

Can You Refuse Light-Duty Work?

In most cases, turning down a light-duty position that matches your medical restrictions, without a valid reason, can result in reduced or suspended benefits.

Reasons that may justify declining a light-duty offer:

  • The job violates your doctor’s restrictions
  • The commute is unreasonably long or creates hardship
  • The position changes hours, shifts, or pay structure
  • You receive medical advice not to perform the proposed duties

If you’re unsure about a light-duty offer or how it might affect your benefits, an experienced workers’ compensation attorney can:

  • Review the details
  • Explain how your benefits could change
  • Help you respond in a way that protects your claim

Get Help Understanding Your Rights

Accepting light-duty work doesn’t mean losing your workers’ compensation benefits, but it can change what you receive. If your pay has dropped, your new duties feel unsafe, or you’re unsure about the offer, contact our law firm for a free consultation and guidance.

We help injured workers across Cleveland understand their options and protect their right to compensation.

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