Washington · statute · Wash. Rev. Code ch. 51.04 · 29 active provisions
The common law system governing the remedy of workers against employers for injuries received in employment is inconsistent with modern industrial conditions. In practice it proves to be economically unwise and unfair. Its administration has produced the result that little of the cost of the employer has reached the wo…
The director shall:(1) Establish and adopt rules governing the administration of this title;(2) Ascertain and establish the amounts to be paid into and out of the accident fund;(3) Regulate the proof of accident and extent thereof, the proof of death and the proof of relationship and the extent of dependency;(4) Superv…
(1) There is established an investigation unit within the department for the purpose of detection, investigation, and prosecution of any act prohibited or declared to be unlawful under this title. The director will employ supervisory and investigative personnel for the program, who must be qualified by training and exp…
(1) The director shall supervise the providing of prompt and efficient care and treatment, including care provided by physician assistants governed by the provisions of chapter 18.71A RCW, including chiropractic care, and including care provided by licensed *advanced registered nurse practitioners, to workers injured d…
(1) The director and his or her authorized assistants have power to issue subpoenas to enforce the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production and examination of books, papers, photographs, tapes, and records before the department in connection with any claim made to the department, any billing submitted t…
In all hearings, actions or proceedings before the department or the board of industrial insurance appeals, or before any court on appeal from the board, any health services provider having theretofore examined or treated the claimant may be required to testify fully regarding such examination or treatment, and shall n…
No employer or worker shall exempt himself or herself from the burden or waive the benefits of this title by any contract, agreement, rule or regulation, and any such contract, agreement, rule or regulation shall be pro tanto void.
The legislature finds that Washington state's workers' compensation system should be designed to focus on achieving the best outcomes for injured workers. Further, the legislature recognizes that controlling pension costs is key to a financially sound workers' compensation system for employers and workers. To these end…
(1) Notwithstanding RCW 51.04.060 or any other provision of this title, an injured worker who is at least fifty years of age may choose from the following: (a) To continue to receive all benefits for which they are eligible under this title, (b) to participate in vocational training if eligible, or (c) to initiate and…
The department must maintain copies of all claim resolution settlement agreements entered into between the parties and furnish copies of such agreements to any party actively negotiating a subsequent claim resolution settlement agreement with the worker on any allowed claim when requested. An employer may not consider…
On December 1, 2011, and annually thereafter through December 1, 2014, the department shall report annually to the appropriate committees of the legislature on the implementation of claim resolution settlement agreements. In calendar years 2015, 2019, and 2023, the department shall contract for an independent study of…
A minor shall be deemed sui juris for the purpose of this title, and no other person shall have any cause of action or right to compensation for an injury to such minor worker, except as expressly provided in this title, but in the event of any disability payments becoming due under this title to a minor worker, under…
On all claims under this title, claimants' written notices, orders, or payments must be forwarded directly to the claimant until such time as there has been entered an order on the claim appealable to the board of industrial insurance appeals. Claimants' written notices, orders, or payments may be forwarded to the clai…
Any notice or order required by this title to be sent to any employer may be served in the manner prescribed by law for personal service of summons and complaint in the commencement of actions in the superior courts of the state, but if the notice or order is mailed, it shall be addressed to the address of the employer…
The department may, at any time, on receipt of written authorization, transmit amounts payable to a claimant, beneficiary, or any supplier of goods or services to the account of such person in a bank or other financial institution regulated by state or federal authority.
If any employer shall be adjudicated to be outside the lawful scope of this title, the title shall not apply to him or her or his or her worker, or if any worker shall be adjudicated to be outside the lawful scope of this title because of remoteness of his or her work from the hazard of his or her employer's work, any…
If the provisions of this title relative to compensation for injuries to or death of workers become invalid because of any adjudication, or be repealed, the period intervening between the occurrence of an injury or death, not previously compensated for under this title by lump payment or completed monthly payments, and…
The obligations of all medical aid contracts approved by the supervisor prior to the repeal of any section of this title pertaining to medical aid contracts shall continue until the expiration of such contracts notwithstanding any such repeal and all provisions of this title pertaining to the operation of medical aid c…
The director shall appoint a workers' compensation advisory committee composed of ten members: Three representing subject workers, three representing subject employers, one representing self-insurers, one representing workers of self-insurers, and two ex officio members, without a vote, one of whom shall be the chair o…
Any employer other than a self-insurer subject to this title shall, under such rules as the department shall prescribe, apply for and obtain from the department a certificate of coverage. The certificate shall be personal and nontransferable and shall be valid as long as the employer continues in business and pays the…
The department of labor and industries upon the request of the secretary of defense of the United States or the secretary of the United States department of energy, may in its discretion approve special insuring agreements providing industrial insurance coverage for workers engaged in the performance of work, either di…
The department shall conduct education and outreach to employers on workers' compensation requirements and premium responsibilities, including independent contractor issues. The department shall work with new employers on an individual basis and also establish mass education campaigns.
(1) The legislature finds that the department is successfully addressing employer fraud and the underground economy, helping ensure that employers who appropriately report and pay premiums can be competitive. Efforts focus on prevention, education, and enforcement by identifying industries for targeted audits, informin…
(1) The department shall include one or more representatives of logging industry workers on the logger safety task force. In addition, the department shall reach out to all employers in the logging industry, including those having one or more on the job fatalities in the last five years, and invite them to participate…
The department may provide information about scholarship opportunities offered by nonprofit organizations and available to children and spouses of workers who suffered an injury in the course of employment resulting in death or permanent total disability. The department may, in its sole discretion, provide information…