People quit jobs they got hurt at — for a better offer, a hostile floor, or sheer exhaustion with the process. The claim doesn’t die when the badge comes back. But the timing of a resignation moves real money, and this is the map.
What survives the resignation: almost everything
Permanent disability is compensation for injury to your earning capacity — it follows you, not the job, and rates identically after separation: same pipeline, same math. Medical care for the accepted parts continues. The case still ends in a Stip or C&R. Nothing about quitting waives any of it — and neither can a severance agreement: comp claims release only through WCAB-approved settlement (§5001), no matter what the HR paperwork says.
What gets contested: the TD checks
Temporary disability compensates injury-caused wage loss. Resign voluntarily and the carrier’s argument writes itself: the wage loss now flows from the resignation. It is a defense position, not a rule — a worker who remains totally unable to work anywhere has the better of it — but expect the fight, and expect it to reach the payment clock immediately. Quitting also reshuffles the return-to-work analysis that drives the job-displacement voucher.
The sequencing play
When there is a choice, reaching P&S first converts the case’s open questions into arithmetic before the leverage changes: the rating lands, the settlement posture forms, and the resignation stops being a defense exhibit. Separation under pressure is a different topic with sharper edges — that’s fired while on comp.
Estimates for informational use; not legal advice.
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Same engine as the tables above — pick your occupation and age, slide the WPI from the report, and carry it into the full calculator when you’re ready.