Policy Purpose

The date of accident determines which workers compensation legislation applies to a claim. The Workers Compensation Act (the Act) that is in force on the date of accident is the Act that applies to that claim, even if the Act has been repealed. The Act will determine the type and amount of compensation payable to injured workers and their dependants.

Many injured workers return to work and then subsequently discover that they have not recovered from their original injury or illness. They suffer an increase in permanent disability or relapse of their disability that result in a disablement that arises from the original compensable injury or illness. In these situations, the worker has experienced a recurrence.

When a recurrence has occurred, this policy establishes criteria to determine whether a worker’s Workers Compensation Board (WCB) benefits should be recalculated. The policy first distinguishes between a new and separate accident and the recurring effects of a previous injury or illness. It then sets out a test that determines whether a worker's benefits should be recalculated.

In some circumstances, the WCB may remove all or a portion of the claim costs related to a recurrence from the accident employer’s claim costs experience.