COMWEL

If an employee has contracted work-related diseases or been injured while he/she was working , o his work, which diseases or injuries require 4 days or longer of medical care, he/she shall submit a claim for related benefits to a branch office (of the COMWEL ) with jurisdiction over a place where his/her workplace is located. In case such an industrial accident has took place at a construction site, a claim for related benefits shall be submitted to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over a place where the site is located. Related claim forms are at any branch office (of the COMWEL) or any WCI medical institutions, or can be downloaded at the COMWEL website (www.kcomwel.or.kr)

If an employer with work-related injuries or diseases needs medical treatments for a prolonged period, he/she shall submit a claim for extended medical treatments, along with his/her doctor-in-charge's written opinion, to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over a medical institution where he/she is under medical treatments. The branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will review related documents submitted and decides his/her eligibility for prolonged medical treatments.

He/she shall submit an claim for transfer to another medical institution, along with a written opinion of his/her doctor-in-charge working with a medical institution where he/she is currently under medical treatments, to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over the current medical institution. The branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will determine his/her eligibility for transfer to another medical institution, considering such factors as the conditions of his/her injuries or diseases, his residence and the appropriateness of the institution that he wants to transfer to.

An employee with work-related injuries or diseases may claim for additional medical treatments at the expense of the COMWEL so long as it's been medically proven that his/her work-related injuries or diseases have flared up or gotten worse than at the end of the initial medical treatment and that it is necessary to provide additional medical care. On the part of the injured employee, he/she shall fill in a prescribed claim for additional medical treatment as signed by his/her employer, and then submit it, along with his/her doctor-in-charge's written medical opinion, to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over his/her workplace or a medical institution where his/her initial medical treatments were given. The branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will determine his/her eligibility for additional medical care after it has made a medical review to see if there are any correlations between the initial injuries or diseases and the current injuries or diseases, and if there is a significant possibility that additional medical care will result in better conditions.

Such injuries or diseases as have been newly developed while an employee with the same injuries and diseases is under medical treatments is called additional injuries or diseases which are compensable only when it's medically proven that they are closely related to the initial accident or the initial injuries or diseases. To get the additional injuries or diseases acknowledged as compensable, the employee shall submit a prescribed claim for additional medical care, along with his/her doctor-in-charge's written medical opinion, to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over the medical institution where he/she is under medical treatments. The branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will reviews the medical opinion and decides his/her eligibility.

The amount of average wage is determined by dividing the total amount of wages paid to an employee for 3 months preceding the day of occurrence of a need to compute the said average wage (usually referred to as "the day of occurrence of occupational accident") by the total number of days in the said 3 months.

If family allowances are given equally to all employees, regardless of their marital status, it can be counted in calculating average wage. However, when family allowances are paid only to employees with dependents and are in proportion to the number of dependents, they shall be regarded as their benefits that are not related to the quality or quantity of the work provided. In the later case, accordingly, family allowances are counted.

Permanent disability benefits are paid to an employee with work-related injuries or diseases who, after the completion of his/her medical treatments, permanently has a physical disability caused by such injuries or diseases. Accordingly, the said permanent disability benefits are paid once the said medical treatments are finished. The 'completion of medical treatments" means that it is not likely that any further medical treatments won't work. If work-related injuries or diseases have caused in permanent disability to an employee, he/she shall submit a claim for permanent disability benefits to a branch office (of the COMWEL) with jurisdiction over his/her workplace or a medical institution where his/her medical treatments were completed. The branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will determine his/her eligibility based on his/her disability grade.

Nursing benefits which are effective as of July 1, 2000 are intended to cover nursing expenses incurred to a covered employee whose work-related injuries or diseases requires continuous nursing services even after the completion of his/her medical treatments. Nursing services are divided into full-time nursing services and occasional nursing services either of which are given depending on the status of the said injuries or diseases. Nursing benefits were first made available to those who were under medical treatments as of July 1, 2000. If the employee submits a claim for nursing benefits to a branch office with jurisdiction, the branch office, upon receipt of the said claim, will determine his/her eligibility.

If a beneficiary of nursing benefits resides at a shelter for people with disabilities, a free-of-charge institution or a house for old people and pays nursing expenses less than the given amount of nursing benefits, he/she shall be reimbursed the amount equivalent to the amount of expenses actually paid.

Injury-Disease Compensation Annuity is paid in lieu of temporary disability benefits to an insured employee who has not recovered from his/her work-related injuries or diseases after 2 years of compensable medical care and has been rated as Invalidity Grade 1-3. When the insured employee wants to get the Injury-Disease Compensation Annuity, he shall submit a claim for the said annuity to a branch office (of the COMWEL). If the claimant has been found eligible for the annuity, and then, his/her invalidity grade has been determined, the Injury-Disease Compensation Annuity is paid, starting from the next month after the month the day of determination of the said invalidity grade falls into.

Return-to-work subsidies are granted to an employer who has a worker with disabilities corresponding to Disability Grade 1-9 even after the completion of his/her medical treatments re-employed in the same position as before for 1 year or longer, or an employer who newly hires such a worker, within 1 year from the completion of medical treatments and retains him/her for 1 year or longer. The amount of the said subsidies, which are paid for 1 year, is KRW 639,900 per worker per month when the employer employs a worker with Disability Grade 1-3, and KRW 426,600 per worker per month when he/she employs a worker with Disability Grade 4-9. This subsidy scheme shall be effective as of July 1, 2004.

Yes, it's possible as long as he/she meets the qualifying requirements of the scheme.

Prospective beneficiaries include workers aged below 60 who completed the medical treatment for their work-related injuries or diseases less than 6 months ago, have no paying job as of the day of a claim for the said program, and have either of the following disabilities: - Disability with the functions of one or more of the 3 major joints in arms or legs - Deformity or disability with the functions or nerves of the spine - Disability with muscles or nerves of arms or legs (including the arm or leg disability caused by damages to brains or the spinal cord), which falls into Disability Grade 12 or higher.

The said subsidies are available for up to 5 years, based on the 1-year or 2-year rental contract.

Job adaptation expenses are paid to an employer or workplace that provides job adaptation training courses required for a worker (with eligibility for permanent disability benefits who has returned to the same workplace) to carry out his/her job in which he/she had engaged before there happened an accident, or transfer to another job, within 6 months after the completion of his/her medical care.