Western Australian Numbered Acts

WORKERS COMPENSATION AND INJURY MANAGEMENT ACT 2023 (NO. 21 OF 2023) - SECT 64

64 .         Reducing or discontinuing income compensation on basis of medical evidence

        (1)         The requirements of this section must be complied with before an employer is permitted to reduce or discontinue income compensation payments on the basis of medical evidence from a medical practitioner as to —

            (a)         the worker’s capacity for work; or

            (b)         the extent to which the worker’s incapacity for work is a result of the worker’s injury.

        (2)         The requirements of this section for a proposed reduction or discontinuation of income compensation payments (the proposed action ) are as follows —

            (a)         the employer must give the worker written notice in accordance with the regulations of the proposed action together with a copy of the medical evidence on the basis of which it is proposed to take that action;

            (b)         the worker must be allowed a period of 21 days after the requirements of paragraph (a) are complied with in which to apply for resolution by conciliation of a dispute about the proposed action (a dispute resolution application );

            (c)         if the worker makes a dispute resolution application within that 21-day period, the employer cannot proceed with the proposed action before the dispute resolution process for the dispute has been finalised as provided by this section;

            (d)         if the worker does not make a dispute resolution application within that 21-day period, the employer is permitted to proceed with the proposed action.

        (3)         The dispute resolution process for a dispute about a proposed action is considered to have been finalised when 1 of the following occurs —

            (a)         the dispute is resolved by conciliation;

            (b)         the dispute is not resolved by conciliation and the period for making an application for determination of the dispute by arbitration expires without the application having been made;

            (c)         an application for determination of the dispute by arbitration is made and an arbitrator determines the matter or matters in dispute;

            (d)         an application for resolution of the dispute by conciliation or determination of the dispute by arbitration is not accepted or is discontinued or dismissed.

        (4)         An arbitrator dealing with an application for determination of a dispute about a proposed reduction or discontinuation of income compensation payments under this section may —

            (a)         determine the amount of the income compensation payments; and

            (b)         make an order as to the making of those payments and the amount, if any, of those payments.

        (5)         For determining, for the purposes of this section, the amount of any income compensation payments, an arbitrator may —

            (a)         treat the worker’s capacity for work, if any, as being of the degree the arbitrator sees fit; and

            (b)         without limiting the matters to which the arbitrator may have regard, take into consideration whether a return to work program has been established for the worker and the worker’s participation in the return to work program, if any.

        (6)         This section does not limit any power of a conciliator in a proceeding on a dispute to direct the suspension or reduction of income compensation payments.