Hi there. The rights of employees receiving workers’ compensation after a workplace accident are governed by the Return to Work Act 2014 (SA). Return to Work SA is the organisation responsible for running South Australia’s workers’ compensation scheme in accordance with this law.

With respect to taking leave, the law says that a worker is still entitled to their ordinary leave entitlements (such as accrual of annual leave and long service leave), even if they are receiving workers’ compensation. This means that any period of time that the worker is unable to work will still be counted towards their ordinary annual leave and long service leave entitlements.

However, the law also says that Return to Work SA can suspend a worker’s weekly compensation payments if the worker decides to apply for and take a period of annual leave during the time they are receiving compensation. In your situation, this means that if you decide to take annual leave, your weekly payments may be suspended while you are on leave.

Therefore, you should consider withdrawing your leave application if you want to avoid your payments being suspended. Speaking to your employer about the issue, and providing them with supporting documentation such as a medical certificate, is the simplest way to resolve this issue. Whether your employer agrees to withdraw your leave application may depend on the terms of your employment contract and/or any workplace policies that you apply to you.

Suggested way forward

For more information about your workers’ compensation entitlements while on leave, you can contact Return to Work SA (www.rtwsa.com). If you want specific advice about your legal rights, you should consider speaking to an employment lawyer. By pressing the “Consult a Lawyer” button, LawAdvisor can help you search for experienced lawyers and obtain fee proposals for their services. Costs for legal advice and representation will vary between providers based on experience and the scope of services.