Texas Updates Minimum and Maximum Benefits
- The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation published updated benefit tables for fiscal year 2027, which runs from Oct. 1 through Sept. 30, 2027, with the state average weekly wage set at $1,314.32.
- Temporary income benefits will have a weekly minimum of $197 and a maximum of $1,314; impairment income benefits will have a weekly minimum of $197 and a maximum of $920.
- Supplemental income benefits have no set minimum but carry a maximum of $920; lifetime income benefits have a weekly minimum of $197 and a maximum of $1,314; death benefits have no minimum but a maximum of $1,314.
- All figures increased from fiscal year 2026 levels in line with the rise in the state average weekly wage.
Court Upholds Denial of Bus Driver’s Mental Health Disorder Claim
- The Oregon Court of Appeals affirmed the Workers’ Compensation Board’s denial of bus driver’s mental health claim against his employer, bus system operator TriMet, ruling that he failed to prove that a 2023 workplace incident was the major contributing cause of his adjustment disorder.
- The case turned on psychologist Dr. Wicher’s evolving opinion: she initially attributed 60% of Hayes’ adjustment disorder to a 2023 work event that occurred while he was driving a bus, with the remaining 40% tied to preexisting personality features like a tendency to react strongly to stress and avoid conflict.
- After reviewing the driver’s complete medical history — which documented depressive reactions and major depressive disorder dating back to 2010 and a suicide attempt in 2014 — Wicher changed her opinion, concluding his preexisting personality features, not the 2023 incident, were the major contributing cause of his condition.
- The court held the board was entitled to credit Wicher’s revised opinion, especially since Hayes offered no competing expert testimony supporting his position.
Resort Lawsuit Signals Misclassification Risk for Spa and Wellness Workers
- A pending lawsuit brought by massage therapists, estheticians, nail technicians, hair stylists and other spa workers at a Hawaii resort alleges they were improperly classified as independent contractors, despite being required to work scheduled shifts, remain on-site during downtime, and perform operational tasks like cleaning, laundry, inventory management and retail staffing.
- The federal district court has denied efforts to dismiss significant portions of the workers’ claims, though the case remains unresolved and no court has yet determined whether the classification was proper.
- Worker-classification tests generally focus heavily on the degree of control a business exercises, meaning factors like set schedules, mandatory on-site presence between clients, non-client-facing operational duties and economic dependence on a single facility can undermine independent contractor status.