Official Site of The State of New Jersey

Ensuring New Jersey workers receive fair and timely compensation benefits for work-related injuries

The Division of Workers' Compensation is responsible for the administration of the N.J. Workers’ Compensation Law, N.J.S.A. 34:15-1 et seq., and the disposition of all disputes raised under the law. The Division operates 15 workers’ compensation courts statewide, providing an impartial forum that ensures workers receive fair and timely Workers’ Compensation benefits, including the payment of medical expenses, temporary disability benefits, and/or permanent disability benefits for compensable injuries that occur while at work.

Through its Office of Special Compensation Funds, the Division enforces the State’s law requiring employers to secure Workers’ Compensation insurance coverage from commercial carriers or through self-insurance programs. The Division also administers the Uninsured Employer’s Fund, which provides temporary disability benefits and medical expenses to workers injured while working for uninsured employers, and the Second Injury Fund, which provides benefit payments to workers who are already partially disabled who subsequently experience a work-related injury which together, render them totally disabled. The Division is supported by dedicated funding from surcharges paid by employers.

New Jersey, a pioneer in promoting legislation for the protection of injured workers, has had a workers' compensation law in effect since 1911. Prior to this, employees injured on the job were forced to sue their employers for negligence under common law. The process, which routinely took many years, created grave hardships for injured workers by leaving them without income and medical benefits while their cases were pending. Also, many claims proved unsuccessful due to the numerous defenses available to an employer under common law, such as contributory negligence and assumption of risk.

Few changes to the system were forthcoming until the reforms of 1979. This followed a long-term study by a select blue ribbon panel consisting of representatives from labor, government, and industry. A major objective of this reform was to enhance benefits to the more seriously disabled while discouraging permanent disability benefit payments to injured workers with only minor or subjective complaints. Provisions were also made for cost-of-living increases for totally and permanently disabled workers, dependents of deceased workers, and Second Injury Fund beneficiaries. Consequently, New Jersey was again on the cutting edge of change. As a result, it was able to avoid the runaway cost increases and inefficiencies experienced by many compensation systems nationwide during the ensuing fifteen-year period.

As a partnership between government, industry, and labor, the New Jersey Workers' Compensation program seeks to establish an equitable balance between the needs of injured workers and the needs of the employers of the state. The law protects both the employee and the employer. Employees receive reasonable and necessary medical care, temporary disability benefits, and, when documented, an award for resulting permanent disability. Employers provide for the cost of such coverage while being protected from more expensive tort litigation and unlimited civil verdicts for non-economic losses. 

The Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC) is responsible for the administration of the NJ Workers’ Compensation Law, N.J.S.A. 34:15-1 et seq., and the disposition of disputes raised under it. It does so by

• Ensuring that injured workers receive fair and timely Workers’ Compensation benefits from their employers and their insurance carriers
• Enforcing the law that requires employers to secure the necessary insurance coverage from commercial carriers or through self-insurance programs.
• Providing temporary disability benefits and medical expenses to workers suffering from compensable injuries while working for uninsured employers

Providing benefit payments to workers who are already partially disabled who subsequently experience a work-related injury, which, together, render them totally disabled.

Maria Del-Valle Koch, Director/Chief Judge
New Jersey Division of Workers' Compensation
PO Box 381, Trenton N.J. 08625-0381
(609) 292-2414, FAX (609) 984-2515

The Division of Workers' Compensation is comprised of two distinct program areas:

• Workers’ Compensation
• Office of Special Compensation Funds (Uninsured Employer's Fund, Compliance Enforcement and Second Injury Fund)

Workers' Compensation Program

When parties are unable to amicably resolve their differences over entitlement to Workers’ Compensation benefits, the Division provides a fair and impartial forum to mediate and if necessary, adjudicate disputes. This function is carried out by the Division’s judicial and administrative staff.

Judicial Staff

Serving under the Director/Chief are Administrative Supervising Judges, Supervising Judges, and Judges of Compensation whose responsibilities, include mediating and adjudicating Workers’ Compensation disputes and reviewing and approving all proposed settlements of formal claims.

Judges of Compensation have the authority to make awards, require medical examinations and services for injured employees, approve and fix attorneys’ fees, and assess penalties where appropriate. Their rulings are binding and are appealable only to the Appellate Division of the Superior Court.

To access the judicial staff directory, click here.

Administrative Staff

The administrative arm of DWC is responsible for the general management of the Workers’ Compensation functions of the Division. This includes the management and support of the central office administrative units and the fifteen district offices throughout the state.

Primary functions of this area include:

• Processing, recording, reviewing, and data entering WC case information
• Processing requests for copies of case files and other available information
• Collecting statistics and maintaining records of reported injuries
• Assigning and scheduling claim petitions and informal hearings
• Providing information concerning benefits and claims processing procedures

To access the administrative staff directory, click here.

Office of Special Compensation Funds

The Office of Special Compensation Funds is responsible for:

• Enforcing the law that requires employers to secure the necessary insurance coverage from commercial carriers or through self-insurance programs
• Providing temporary disability benefits and medical expenses to workers suffering from compensable injuries while working for uninsured employers
• Providing benefit payments to workers who are already partially disabled who subsequently experience a work-related injury which together, rendering them totally disabled.  

To access the Office of Special Compensation Funds directory, click here.

Failure to carry Workers' Compensation insurance or to have an approved self-insured status is a disorderly persons offense and possibly a criminal offense in New Jersey. The Division is actively involved in identifying non-compliant employers as well as levying and collecting penalties and restitution once such employers are identified.

Sanctions for uninsured employers are severe, ranging from prosecution as a strict liability disorderly person's offense to a fourth-degree criminal offense.

In addition to criminal sanctions there are civil fines and penalties. Uninsured employers, upon identification, can be assessed penalties of up to $5,000 for the first ten days of non-compliance in addition to up to $5,000 for every ten-day period thereafter.

Note: If you are aware of an uninsured employer, you may provide this information to the Office of Special Compensation Funds by e-mail at oscf@dol.nj.gov or by completing the Report of Non-Compliance form. You need not identify yourself, but you should be prepared to provide the name and exact address of the employer and, if possible, the names of the principle operators of the business.