A Louisiana contractor's employee earns $3,200 per month and is injured on the job, resulting in total temporary disability. What is the approximate weekly workers' compensation benefit if the state average weekly wage is $950?
Correct Answer
B) $492
Louisiana workers' comp pays 66⅔% of average weekly wage, capped at state average. Employee's weekly wage is $3,200÷4.33=$738. Benefit is $738×66⅔%=$492.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
Option B ($492) is correct. Louisiana workers' compensation for total temporary disability pays 66⅔% of the employee's average weekly wage, subject to a maximum cap based on the state average weekly wage. Step 1: Convert monthly to weekly wage: $3,200 ÷ 4.33 weeks/month ≈ $738.99/week. Step 2: Apply 66⅔%: $739 × 0.6667 ≈ $492. The $950 state average weekly wage cap is not triggered here because $738 < $950, but the benefit ($492) is still based on 66⅔% of the employee's actual weekly wage.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option A: $554
$554 would result from applying a higher percentage (approximately 75%) to the weekly wage, or from using an incorrect conversion factor for the monthly-to-weekly calculation. Louisiana's TTD benefit is 66⅔%, not 75%.
Option C: $633
$633 would result from applying 66⅔% to the monthly wage directly ($3,200 × 0.6667 ≈ $2,133/month, roughly $633/week × 3.36 weeks) or from another arithmetic error. The benefit must be calculated on the weekly wage, not the monthly wage.
Option D: $738
$738 is the employee's gross weekly wage before applying the 66⅔% benefit rate. This is a common trap — selecting the pre-benefit weekly wage rather than the actual compensation benefit payable.
Memory Technique
Louisiana TTD = 'Two-Thirds of Weekly': 66⅔% × weekly wage. Monthly-to-weekly conversion: ÷ 4.33 (not ÷ 4). Remember 4.33 because there are 52 weeks ÷ 12 months = 4.333 weeks per month. Write these two formulas: Weekly = Monthly ÷ 4.33; Benefit = Weekly × 66.67%.
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