House Study Bill 672 



                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON
                                            LABOR BILL BY CHAIRPERSON
                                            OLSON)


    Passed House,  Date               Passed Senate, Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act requiring certain weekly workers' compensation benefits to
  2    be calculated by including an employee's overtime, shift
  3    differential, and premium pay.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  5 TLSB 6472YC 82
  6 av/rj/8

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 85.36, subsections 6 and 7, Code 2007,
  1  2 are amended to read as follows:
  1  3    6.  In the case of an employee who is paid on a daily or
  1  4 hourly basis, or by the output of the employee, the weekly
  1  5 earnings shall be computed by dividing by thirteen the
  1  6 earnings, not including but not limited to overtime or, shift
  1  7 differential, and premium pay, of the employee earned in the
  1  8 employ of the employer in the last completed period of
  1  9 thirteen consecutive calendar weeks immediately preceding the
  1 10 injury.  If the employee was absent from employment for
  1 11 reasons personal to the employee during part of the thirteen
  1 12 calendar weeks preceding the injury, the employee's weekly
  1 13 earnings shall be the amount the employee would have earned
  1 14 had the employee worked when work was available to other
  1 15 employees of the employer in a similar occupation.  A week
  1 16 which does not fairly reflect the employee's customary
  1 17 earnings shall be replaced by the closest previous week with
  1 18 earnings that fairly represent the employee's customary
  1 19 earnings.
  1 20    7.  In the case of an employee who has been in the employ
  1 21 of the employer less than thirteen calendar weeks immediately
  1 22 preceding the injury, the employee's weekly earnings shall be
  1 23 computed under subsection 6, taking the earnings, not
  1 24 including overtime or, shift differential, and premium pay,
  1 25 for such purpose to be the amount the employee would have
  1 26 earned had the employee been so employed by the employer the
  1 27 full thirteen calendar weeks immediately preceding the injury
  1 28 and had worked, when work was available to other employees in
  1 29 a similar occupation.  If the earnings of other employees
  1 30 cannot be determined, the employee's weekly earnings shall be
  1 31 the average computed for the number of weeks the employee has
  1 32 been in the employ of the employer.
  1 33    Sec. 2.  Section 85.61, subsection 3, Code Supplement 2007,
  1 34 is amended to read as follows:
  1 35    3.  "Gross earnings" means recurring payments by employer
  2  1 to the employee for employment, before any authorized or
  2  2 lawfully required deduction or withholding of funds by the
  2  3 employer, excluding irregular bonuses, retroactive pay,
  2  4 overtime, penalty pay, reimbursement of expenses, expense
  2  5 allowances, and the employer's contribution for welfare
  2  6 benefits.
  2  7                           EXPLANATION
  2  8    This bill requires the calculation of the amount of weekly
  2  9 workers' compensation benefits to include, not exclude, an
  2 10 employee's earnings for overtime, shift differential, and
  2 11 premium pay.
  2 12 LSB 6472YC 82
  2 13 av/rj/8