NYS Workers' Comp Settlement Chart: Weeks per Body Part and 2026 Rates
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The NYS workers' comp settlement chart is not a price list. It is the statutory schedule of the maximum weeks of benefits for each body part — 312 weeks for an arm, 288 for a leg, 244 for a hand. Your award is those weeks times the loss-of-use percentage the judge sets, paid at two-thirds of your average weekly wage. For injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, the weekly cap is $1,281.50. This is not a lawsuit and there is no class settlement or claim form.
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Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
What the Chart Actually Is
What people call the “settlement chart” is the Schedule Loss of Use (SLU) table in New York's Workers' Compensation Law, which the Workers' Compensation Board reprints on its forms. An SLU award is, in the Board's words, a cash benefit for “the loss of earning power resulting from a permanent functional impairment of a body part.” The Board also says a schedule award “is given not for an injury sustained, but for residual permanent physical and functional impairments.”
So the chart does not say what a torn rotator cuff is worth. It says the most weeks an arm can produce. A 25% loss of use of the arm is 25% of 312 weeks.
Body parts on the chart: arm (shoulder and elbow), hand (wrist and forearm), fingers and thumb, leg (hip and knees), foot (ankle), toes, eyesight, hearing, and disfigurement of the face, neck or scalp. The back and neck are not on the weeks schedule.
Case Details
There is no court case. SLU awards are decided inside the New York State Workers' Compensation Board, by a Workers' Compensation Law Judge. Your doctor must report that you reached maximum medical improvement (MMI) and state the percentage of function you permanently lost. If the insurer disagrees, it can get an opinion from an Independent Medical Examiner, and the Board decides the percentage.
Doctors must rate under the Board's 2018 Impairment Guidelines, in effect since January 1, 2018. The official sources: the Board's Understanding Your Schedule Loss of Use Award and the rate table in Form C-500.
Status: The Chart Is Fixed, the Rates Moved on July 1, 2026
1. New maximum rate. In Subject Number 046-1805, dated April 16, 2026, the Board set the maximum weekly benefit at $1,281.50 and the minimum at $384.45 for injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. That is two-thirds of the 2025 state average weekly wage of $1,922.25. Injuries from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026 stay at the old $1,222.42 cap — the date of injury decides the rate.
2. A corrected calculation. On September 4, 2026, the Board corrected a worked example in its official SLU FAQ. The old example gave an 18% arm SLU; the Board said that calculation was incorrect and that, in its example (shoulder flexion of 135 degrees, healthy side at 160 degrees), the right result is 11.11%. If an SLU figure in your case leaned on that example, ask your representative about it.
Who the Chart Applies To
The chart applies if you have an accepted New York workers' compensation claim and a permanent loss of function in a scheduled body part. The Board's three conditions: you have recovered as far as you will, your doctor filed a report under the current guidelines stating you reached MMI, and you have a permanent loss of function from the work injury. MMI is presumed no more than two years after the date of injury.
If your permanent injury is to your back or neck, the weeks chart does not apply. The Board recognizes two kinds of permanent partial disability: Schedule Loss of Use and Non-Schedule Loss. Non-schedule cases turn on loss of wage-earning capacity, which caps benefits between 225 weeks (15% or less) and 525 weeks (96% or more). The Board says there is “no simple formula” for that figure.
How an SLU Award Is Calculated
The Board's example: 25% loss of use of an arm, average weekly wage $900. 312 weeks × 25% = 78 weeks. $900 × two-thirds = $600 a week. 78 × $600 = $46,800. Temporary benefits already paid come off that total, and so do wages your employer paid you while you were out if it seeks reimbursement.
The ceiling: for injuries from July 1, 2026, a total loss of use of an arm at the $1,281.50 cap works out to 312 × $1,281.50 = $399,828. Few awards approach that; most SLUs are partial percentages.
The statute also sets separate amounts for hearing loss (60 weeks for one ear, 150 for both) and caps facial disfigurement at $20,000. Our New York workers' compensation calculator runs the weekly-rate part; for other states see the settlement chart by body part.
How the NY Schedule and Rates Got Here
- 1
April 2017 — Lawmakers Order New Guidelines
Legislation in Workers' Compensation Law section 15(3)(x) directs the Board to adopt revised permanency guidelines for SLU injuries, reflecting advances in modern medicine.
- 2
January 1, 2018 — 2018 Guidelines Take Effect
The new SLU guidelines replace chapters 1 through 8 of the 2012 Guidelines. Doctors rating arm, leg, hand and foot impairment must use them.
- 3
September 30, 2022 — New SLU Process
The Board revises the SLU process and the EC-81.7 form. Parties must act, or ask for an extension, within 75 days.
- 4
April 16, 2026 — New Maximum Announced
Subject Number 046-1805 sets the maximum weekly benefit at $1,281.50 and the minimum at $384.45, based on a 2025 state average weekly wage of $1,922.25.
- 5
July 1, 2026 — New Rates Apply
The $1,281.50 cap applies to injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Earlier injuries keep the rate for their own date of injury.
- 6
September 4, 2026 — SLU FAQ Corrected
The Board fixes a wrong worked example in its SLU FAQ: with a contralateral shoulder baseline, the correct arm SLU is 11.11%, not the 18% previously shown.
Three Things to Watch For
Because the chart is public and the numbers look simple, it gets used to sell things:
“Your knee is worth $X” chart ads
Charts that list a dollar value per body part are not New York law. The statute gives only maximum weeks; your dollar figure depends on the percentage the judge sets and on your own average weekly wage.
Paid “advances” on an SLU award
Once an SLU is decided, you can ask for it as a lump sum — at the hearing or by writing to the Board — and the Board directs the insurer to pay. Weigh that before signing over part of an award to a lender for cash now.
Representatives asking for money upfront
Under the Board's rules, an attorney or licensed representative may not charge you directly. Any fee must be approved by the Board, comes out of the award and is paid by the insurance carrier.
NYS Workers' Comp Settlement Chart — Questions People Actually Ask
What is the NYS workers' comp settlement chart?
It is the Schedule Loss of Use table in New York's Workers' Compensation Law: the maximum weeks of benefits for each body part. Arm 312, leg 288, hand 244, foot 205, eye 160, thumb 75, first finger 46, second finger 30, third finger 25, fourth finger 15, great toe 38, other toes 16.
How is NYS workers' comp settlement calculated?
For a schedule award: chart weeks × your loss-of-use percentage = weeks owed; then weeks × two-thirds of your average weekly wage, capped at the maximum for your date of injury. The Board's example: 25% of an arm with a $900 average weekly wage is 78 weeks at $600, or $46,800, minus temporary benefits already paid.
What is the average workers' comp settlement in New York?
The Board does not publish an average settlement figure that we could find, and an average would say little about your case. The amount depends on the body part, the percentage the judge sets and your wage. Run your own numbers with the formula above or our workers' comp case value guide.
What percentage does workers' comp pay in NY?
Two-thirds of your average weekly wage, up to the weekly maximum. For injuries from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, the maximum is $1,281.50 and the minimum is $384.45. For injuries from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, the cap was $1,222.42.
Is a back injury on the NYS settlement chart?
No. The schedule lists arms, legs, hands, feet, fingers, toes, eyes, hearing and disfigurement — not the back or neck. A permanent back injury is handled as a non-schedule loss, where the Board sets a loss of wage-earning capacity that caps benefits between 225 and 525 weeks.
Is an SLU award the same as a Section 32 settlement?
No. An SLU is a benefit the judge awards under the chart. A Section 32 waiver agreement is a negotiated settlement in which, as the Board's form says, “You are waiving your right to future workers' compensation benefits.” Every party has 10 calendar days from submission to withdraw. After approval becomes final, the carrier has 10 calendar days to send the check, or you can ask for a penalty. If you give up future medical care, Medicare's interests must be considered.
Does physical therapy increase workers' comp settlement?
Not directly. An SLU pays for the permanent loss of function left after you reach maximum medical improvement, not for the treatment you received. Treatment matters because the percentage is measured once you have recovered as far as you will. A later increase requires objective evidence that your loss actually got worse.
How fast is an SLU paid, and can I appeal?
After the decision is filed, the insurer has 10 days to pay. Either side can appeal within 30 days of the decision. You can take the award in regular checks or ask for a lump sum. Questions go to the Board at (877) 632-4996 or claims@wcb.ny.gov; see also our appeal deadlines by state.
Separate from this case: were you injured in the last 2 years?
Class-action payouts are fixed amounts through an administrator. A personal injury claim is a different case — and often worth far more. Free estimate, no obligation.
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