Light Duty and Work Restrictions in California Workers’ Comp

How light duty actually works in a California comp claim: when a modified-work offer cuts off TD, what happens when you accept or refuse, earning less on restricted duty, the §4658.1 offer that defeats the voucher, and the traps on both sides of the offer.

Checked against primary sources · Oct 19, 2026 · Editorial standards

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The restriction slip — “no lifting over 20 pounds, no overhead work” — turns every comp claim into a three-way negotiation among what the doctor wrote, what the employer can offer, and what the checks require. The rules are more mechanical than either side admits.

What makes an offer valid

For TD, the test is the written restrictions: the employer has to show work within them that actually exists and is actually offered. Refuse a genuine offer and TD generally stops — or, if the job pays less, drops to partial measured by what it would have paid (§4657) — because the wage loss stops being the injury’s. An “offer” that fails that test (duties that quietly exceed the restrictions, a job that exists only on paper) is not the offer that cuts anything off. The stricter elements — reasonable commuting distance and at least 85% of the wages at injury (§4658.1), lasting at least twelve months (§4658.7) — define the offer at P&S that defeats the voucher, below.

Working it: the differential

Accept and earn less — fewer hours, lower classification — and TD converts to partial: payment rides the wage differential, not the full loss. Working light duty also builds the record both directions: it evidences good faith and earning capacity, and it tests the restrictions in public. Which is the trap — exceeding your restrictions at work (or on camera in the parking lot) is the defense exhibit that shrinks cases. Work the restrictions as written; get them changed by the doctor if they’re wrong, not by improvising.

The 60-day voucher window

Light duty’s endgame arrives at P&S: a qualifying regular/modified/alternative work offer within 60 days forecloses the supplemental job displacement voucher (§4658.7); silence or a non-qualifying offer triggers it when the injury leaves permanent disability — and SB 863 made it non-settleable. Either way the PD rating is untouched: permanent disability compensates the injury, not the job outcome — the string prices the same whether you are back at work or not. Employers running this from the other side: the employer’s guide.

Estimates for informational use; not legal advice.

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FAQ

Do I have to accept light duty from my employer?

If the offer genuinely fits your doctor’s restrictions and the work is really there, refusing it generally stops temporary disability — or cuts it to partial, measured by what the job would have paid (§4657) — because the wage loss is no longer the injury’s fault. An offer whose duties exceed the restrictions is not the offer that cuts off TD. The stricter elements — reasonable commuting distance, at least 85% of your wages (§4658.1), and at least twelve months of work (§4658.7) — govern the offer at permanent and stationary that defeats the job-displacement voucher.

What if light duty pays less than my regular job?

Working reduced hours or a lower-paid assignment converts total TD into partial: the system pays on the wage differential rather than the full wage loss. You are not choosing between working and benefits — the combination is designed to keep income near the TD level while you recover.

What if my employer has no light duty available?

Then TD continues while you remain restricted — the employer’s inability to accommodate is not the worker’s wage loss to absorb. And if the injury leaves permanent disability and no qualifying offer arrives within 60 days of the permanent-and-stationary report, the supplemental job displacement voucher comes into play (§4658.7).

About this guide. Rating and dollar figures here are computed with — or checked against — RateString’s rating engine, which reproduces the State’s own published worked examples (see the proof). Where the guide relies on a statute or regulation, it cites it in the text. Descriptive information, not legal advice. See something wrong? Report an error.