Worker’s Compensation: Employee Not Entitled to Both TTD and Retirement Benefits

January 21st, 2015 by JBWK

In McKellar v. Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, Inc., 63 Va. App. 448, 758 S.E.2d 104 (2014), the Court of Appeals of Virginia recently held that a claimant who was injured on the job only two weeks before he was scheduled to retire was not eligible for temporary total disability (“TTD”). The claimant was injured but able to return to work under restrictions until his retirement date. However, shortly after the claimant retired, his doctor placed him on a ‘no work’ status and the claimant filed for TTD and medical benefits.

The court held that the claimant was entitled to medical benefits, but not entitled to TTD, because he would have been out of work anyways due to his retirement and because he had no loss of income as he was retired when the doctor placed him on a no work status. The court opined that he may have been eligible for TTD had he attempted to find employment after his retirement but those facts weren’t present in this case.

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