Hawaii Workers' Compensation: Fast Facts

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Coverage Requirements Under Hawaii State Law

All businesses with at least one employee (part-time, full-time, or temporary) must have Hawaii workers' compensation coverage.

Work-Related Injury or Illness Reporting Requirements

Tell your supervisor about your work-related injury immediately, preferably in writing. Be sure to report the date, time, and relevant details about your work-related illness or injury (such as any witnesses). Your employer must then file Form WC-1 with the state of Hawaii's Disability Compensation Division (DCD) within 7 days.

Where to Seek Medical Care

You can see any doctor you like to treat your industrial injury or illness and be sure to tell them it's work-related. Once you choose a healthcare provider, you must notify your employer's insurer in writing if you decide to change doctors.

Waiting Period for Lost-Wage Benefits in Hawaii

Your first 3 days off work are always unpaid after a work-related illness or injury accident in Hawaii. If your employer denies your claim, you can also apply for Hawaii'sTemporary Disability Insurance (TDI)benefits.

Hawaii Workers' Compensation Statute of Limitations

You have two years from your job injury or illness diagnosis date to file your workers' compensation claim in Hawaii.

Hawaii Weekly Compensation Rate

You can receive 66 2/3% of Hawaii's gross average weekly wage in wage-loss benefits paid once every 2 weeks. This amount is subject to the state's current maximum and minimum benefit limits approved for each calendar year.

How Long You Can Receive Hawaii Workers' Comp Benefits

  • Medical benefits: unlimited
  • Death benefits: funeral costs totaling up to 10x the current max weekly benefit rate and burial costs totaling up to 5x the current max weekly benefit rate, plus weekly TTD benefit payments until the surviving spouse dies or remarries
  • Temporary Total Disability (TTD): duration of disability
  • Temporary Partial Disability (TPD): duration of disability
  • Permanent Partial Disability (PPD): duration based on scheduled loss; disfigurement benefits cannot pay more than $30,000 after final evaluation at 6-month or 1-year marks
  • Permanent Total Disability (PTD): duration of disability

Hawaii Workers' Comp Coverage Exemptions

The following employees are automatically exempt from Hawaii workers' compensation coverage:

  • Domestic workers that earn less than $225 per quarter in a given calendar year (i.e., babysitters and occasional house cleaners)
  • Federal employees and maritime workers
  • Licensed and/or ordained ministers, priests, or rabbis
  • Independent contractors
  • Real estate employees working on a commission-only basis, such as Realtors, brokers, and sales agents
  • Sole proprietors, partners, and any corporate officer with at least a 50% ownership stake
  • Volunteers or unpaid students working for any charitable, educational, or religious non-profit organization

Hawaii Workers' Compensation Attorney Fees

All Hawaii workers' compensation attorneys work on contingency. This means you only pay your lawyer for a successful claim outcome. Hawaii rev. Stat. 431:242 awards “reasonable attorney's fees” for successful appeals of denied claims. In most cases, that involves multiplying a standard hourly legal fee x number of reasonable hours spent representing your claim. Once the lawyer calculates that amount, an administrative law judge must approve the final legal fee before any payments occur. However, Hawaii law limits that amount to no more than 25% of your award.