# Injured on Class A Duty - Compensation and Benefits



## Brasidas (28 Feb 2014)

Class A reservist; initial injury on class A, reinjury on class B, subsequent surgery while on class A with full-time civilian employment.

I was a bit blindsided by what my timeline was going to be for surgery from a service-related injury, and I have now been laid off on disability from my civilian job. A large component of that is that I was told, point-blank I needed to take two weeks off, another that I'd have to be on modified duties for four months and rehab going up to 10 months. With my job and the size of the company, that wasn't going to work.

I've learned that I'm entitled to at least some form of reserve force compensation. The annex A is with the surgeon. There's been some paperwork lost, but there's at least a clear CF98 and witness statements to show service-related injury. So far, two weeks seems guaranteed, but I've lost my job because I wasn't going to be able to perform my duties for four months (according to physio), so I'm not sure what the standard is there. When the surgeon considers me fit to perform the tasks from a description of tasks from my former job?

Meanwhile, there's EI disability. I need to get my RoE, but I apparently qualify for up to 15 weeks through that.

Given that I don't know what I'm going to get through RFC, and I might not know for sure until later in my recovery, should I be putting in an EI claim ASAP and just inform their office when I'm getting benefits from the army? Currently laid up healing and not looking forward to lineups at service canada if there's no point.


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## DAA (28 Feb 2014)

I'm no expert on the subject and have merely scratched the surf of this can of worms.

As far as I understand it, RFC is only applicable to personnel employed on and injured/attributable during periods of "Class C" service.  You may have a claims for "SISIP-LTD", which applies to Res F personnel without having to pay any premiums as they are employer covered.

Your best bet and which I highly recommend.  Pay a visit to your local JPSU coordinator.  They may have better answers in your case and be more knowledgeable in such matters.


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## dapaterson (28 Feb 2014)

RFC is payable for class A or B service.  It's CBI 210.72


> 210.72 - Compensation for Disability - Reserve Force
> 
> 210.72(1) (Definition) The definitions in this paragraph apply in this instruction:
> 
> ...



There's also GECA - see http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/g-5/FullText.html


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## kratz (28 Feb 2014)

I have just gone through the RFC, the system works when you engage it and use it.
Follow the ref dapaterson provided and folllow-up on DAA's advice in speaking with your JPSU.
You may not be entitled to everything, but any assistance is a benefit.


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## aquaholic75 (8 Apr 2015)

Tried to find any info in regards to this but, came up dry.  I recently injured myself (Fractured ankle) on course. I'm unable to return to my full time (civilian) job due to the nature of the injury and what I do. Now there is debate in my unit as to who covers what etc. I'm not too worried about who or how the reserve pay is covered. I am, however, concerned as to who is responsible to cover my time off from my civilian job.  Would it be VAC? My STD from my civilian employer or would it be WSIB (Someone at the unit mentioned this but, I didn't think WSIB was available to us). Any help with some sort of firm direction would be fantastic because I'm getting tired of chasing false or misinforming leads.


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## ModlrMike (8 Apr 2015)

Get a hold of these guys. They're supposed to be able to help you sort this out.

IPSC London

Mailing Address:
IPSC London
Wolseley Barracks
701 Oxford Street East
London ON N5Y 4T7
Telephone:
519-660-5275

Unit Contacts:

    Platoon Commander
        Captain J. Robbins
            ext 5633
    Platoon Warrant
        Warrant Officer C. Graham
            ext 5140
    Chief Clerk
        Corporal R. Thomas 
            ext 5332
    Services Manager
        Ms. Joanne Brumwell
            5091
    Outreach/Return to Work/Casualty Tracking Co-ord
         Vacant
            ext 5195

With respect to orders and regulations:

Compensation and Benefit Instructions (CBI) 210.72, 
Defence Administrative Orders and Directives (DAOD) 5018-2, 
Canadian Forces Administrative Orders (CFAO) 24-6


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## Teager (8 Apr 2015)

This may help too http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-9.8/page-1.html


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## mariomike (8 Apr 2015)

aquaholic75 said:
			
		

> My STD from my civilian employer  < snip >



Do you have a collective agreement?


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## aquaholic75 (8 Apr 2015)

mariomike said:
			
		

> Do you have a collective agreement?


Yes we do have a collective agreement.


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## aquaholic75 (8 Apr 2015)

mariomike said:
			
		

> Do you have a collective agreement?



Thank you for this direction. Didn't even think to look there.  Found nothing in there regarding injuries sustained while employed elsewhere exempting me from coverage. Should be good to go with my employer's STD.


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## mariomike (8 Apr 2015)

aquaholic75 said:
			
		

> Thank you for this direction. Didn't even think to look there.  Found nothing in there regarding injuries sustained while employed elsewhere exempting me from coverage. Should be good to go with my employer's STD.



Your employer may also have a Modified Duty Program. Where I worked, if you could blink your eyes and wanted to come in, that was OK with them. Didn't matter if the injury occurred on Class A or skiing. They didn't care, and didn't ask.


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## aquaholic75 (8 Apr 2015)

mariomike said:
			
		

> Your employer may also have a Modified Duty Program. Where I worked, if you could blink your eyes and wanted to come in, that was OK with them. Didn't matter if the injury occurred on Class A or skiing. They didn't care, and didn't ask.


My work does have modified duties but, unfortunately, we already have too many people off on it for me to get in.


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## Harris (8 Apr 2015)

Reserve Froce Compensation Claim is what you need to submit as per http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/caf-community-benefits-ill-injured-deceased/guide.page:

Reserve Force - Compensation During a Period of Injury, Disease or Illness (RFC)
References
Compensation and Benefit Instructions (CBI) 210.72, Defence Administrative Orders and Directives (DAOD) 5018-2, Canadian Forces Administrative Orders (CFAO) 24-6

Purpose
RFC applies when an injury or illness continues beyond the termination of the Class of Reserve service during which it occurred.

Eligibility
Members of the Reserve Force on Class A, B or C Service who are incapable of performing duty due to an injury, disease or illness attributable to that service are entitled to RFC when the injury or illness continues beyond the termination of the class of Reserve service during which it occurred.

Details
Approval of payment of RFC is based on the confirmation that the member is incapacitated as a result of military service, in accordance with CBI 210.72. The request for compensation is initiated by the member's parent unit by completing the form DND 2398 which is available in the Defence Forms Catalogue. This form, staffed through the chain of command to DCSM, constitutes the required investigation and the application for payment of compensation.

Advances
An Officer Commanding a Command may authorize an advance of RFC for a period not to exceed three months. Advance payment in excess of three months requires the prior approval of Director Casualty Support Management (DCSM). Members should be advised in writing prior to the issuance of any advance RFC that such advances are subject to recovery action if they are not subsequently approved by DCSM.

Additional period of payment
When RFC continues after an initial period of payment, the unit shall forward directly to DCSM the following:

an updated doctor's statement;
an updated member's statement; and
an updated employer's statement (if applicable) with a covering letter/memorandum explaining the request for additional payment.
Termination
RFC is no longer payable once a competent medical authority has established that the member is no longer incapacitated and the member is capable of:
Resuming active participation in the Reserve Force; or
Resuming the occupation held at the time the injury, disease or illness occurred; or
Seeking gainful civilian employment if the member was not so employed at the time the injury, disease or illness occurred.
RFC also ceases:
On the date the member is released from the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF);
If the member resumes attendance at an educational institution if a full-time student; or
When, the member unreasonably refuses to accept the medical treatment prescribed.
Subject to Ministerial approval, compensation may be considered:
When a member is a full-time student receiving treatment as an outpatient and has resumed attendance at an educational institution and:
there is a loss of income from part-time employment, either civilian, or military; or
the member has incurred additional and reasonable expenses to attend the educational institution or place where the medical treatment is given.


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## brihard (20 Sep 2017)

Doing some research. This is for one of my troops.

Class A soldier, participating in PT on his own time- a run. He injured himself on his run and has had to get physio, which he has paid for out of pocket. He is still getting physio. The injury happened about 8 days ago. Fit troop

Tomorrow night we'll be filling out his CF-98. I'm not sure where to go from here. I do note that the CBI for RFC refers to the EXPRES test, not the new FORCE test. I'm not sure if running is essentially by default considered approved PT, or in what form the approved PT has to be documented for it to count.

My thinking is he shouldn't have to pay for his own physio, but I don't know how that would work. I don't know what other compensation there would be or how that would work. I'm still determining how much this has cost him and whether it is impacting his ability to work.

I also need to determine if the appropriate approach is RFC, or if it's GECA- if the latter might cover his physio?

Frankly I'm lost on this one. A steer would be appreciated.


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## Lumber (20 Sep 2017)

Brihard said:
			
		

> Doing some research. This is for one of my troops.
> 
> Class A soldier, participating in PT on his own time- a run. He injured himself on his run and has had to get physio, which he has paid for out of pocket. He is still getting physio. The injury happened about 8 days ago. Fit troop
> 
> ...



We had a reserve (class-A) sailor out west sailing for a weekend exercise aboard one of our training vessels (ORCA class). The ship was docked in one of the small BC communities for night. The member went ashore for some drinks, and within about 500m from the ship, he stepped in a crack in the pavement and rolled his ankle. He wasn't allowed to keep sailing, and had to be send by land back to the base.

In the end, he received zero compensation whatsoever because he was not on duty when the injury happened, and he's  a Class-A reservist.

I highly doubt the military would consider your soldier going for a run on his own time to considered having been on duty at the time, and therefore he'll get zero compensation from the military.

I'm pretty sure I have all the references to back this up somewhere, as I had build a brief to my CO regarding the sailor I mentioned above.


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## ModlrMike (20 Sep 2017)

I wouldn't worry about the difference between EXPRES and FORCE, one could argue they are materially the same thing.

The most important part of any Reserve RFC is that there must be a service cause, or service related nexus. Having administered a similar RFC, I can tell you that it may be difficult to substantiate a service related nexus for a Class A member performing fitness on their own time. You will need to be very familiar with CBI 210.72.DAOD 5018-2 covers CF98, but I'm not convinced that a CF98 is applicable in this instance.


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## brihard (20 Sep 2017)

Lumber said:
			
		

> We had a reserve (class-A) sailor out west sailing for a weekend exercise aboard one of our training vessels (ORCA class). The ship was docked in one of the small BC communities for night. The member went ashore for some drinks, and within about 500m from the ship, he stepped in a crack in the pavement and rolled his ankle. He wasn't allowed to keep sailing, and had to be send by land back to the base.
> 
> In the end, he received zero compensation whatsoever because he was not on duty when the injury happened, and he's  a Class-A reservist.
> 
> ...



Your sailor was drinking. My troop was on PT.

From CBI 210.72 - Reserve Force - Compensaiton during a period of injury, illness, or disease:

"210.72(4) (Deemed Class A Service) Subject to paragraphs (7), (8), (9) and (10), an officer or non-commissioned member of the Reserve Force who suffers any injury, disease or illness while participating in a Commanding Officer approved CF Exercise Prescription (Expres), or Land Forces Command Physical Fitness Standard (LFCPFS) prescribed activity, as part of an authorized fitness program, is deemed to be on Class A Reserve Service for the sole purpose of compensation under this instruction."

I need to figure out how that turns into his physio being paid for, if in fact it's possible.


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## mariomike (20 Sep 2017)

Brihard said:
			
		

> Class A soldier, participating in PT on his own time- a run. He injured himself on his run and has had to get physio, which he has paid for out of pocket.



This may, or may not, be of interest,

Injured Class A 
https://army.ca/forums/threads/118630/post-1360891#msg1360891

Need direction-class A seeking physio  
https://army.ca/forums/threads/103332.0


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## brihard (20 Sep 2017)

Disregard my question... Got some new info which changes the picture somewhat in a helpful way.


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## Staff Weenie (20 Sep 2017)

I've fought this before for some of my troops. The goal is to make an ironclad link between the injury, and service. The old EXPRESS forms helped, because you could clearly indicate what activities you participated in, in order to stay fit and pass the test. If you were injured doing one of the activities you had listed, it really helped. Our policy in Health Services is that: Reserve Force (Res F) personnel are covered only during specified periods of eligibility based on their duty status and the relatedness of their illness or injury to military service (QR&O 34.07). (see http://www.forces.gc.ca/en/caf-community-health-services-benefits-drug-coverage/coverage-eligibility-management-access.page).

QR&O 34.07 (6) Subject to paragraph (5), a member of the Reserve Force whose need for medical care is attributable to the performance of duty is entitled:
a.for the remaining period of duty to medical care at public expense; and
b.after termination of the period of duty to such medical care at public expense as the attending physician may consider necessary and as authorized by the officer commanding the command.

So, make the link to service - a CF 98 completed which indicates it was PT for the purposes of meeting the FORCE Eval, which is considered duty related. Then have the CO (or RSS O) link in to the BSurg at your supporting clinic, and indicate that the mbr was on duty (PT), suffered an injury due to this service, and is now out of pocket for treatment. They can cover Physio, and objects such as canes, crutches, orthotics. They will not cover massage therapy. They will probably resist at first, many of the BSurg are junior, and do not understand this issue. Some just don't care. If you keep hammering the link to service, you will eventually prevail.

Send me a PM if you need any help on this.


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## Kv-super (22 Sep 2017)

Hello all,

Ok so heres the short story(no ranting) im currently serving in the reserves and just as summer started i ended up getting hurt on duty which resulted in me being off work the whole summer (3 months). Sad thing is i havent gotten paid those 3 months after i was specifically told i would be compensated for time off work (civilian)  my unit is extremely incompetent and wont handle my file in a timely manner and the result i am now serverly in debt. What i am now getting to is if anyone knows a number i can call for this type of issue because i am desperate to get what i am entitled to have. I tried looking for dnd numbers but the one that was closest to my issue is not in service (go figure)

ONLY SERIOUS RESPONSES, i dont need any Smart alecs only responses with solutions

Thank you


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## mariomike (22 Sep 2017)

Kv-super said:
			
		

> im currently serving in the reserves and just as summer started i ended up getting hurt on duty



For reference, see also,

Just a question  
https://milnet.ca/forums/threads/125790/post-1488630.html#msg1488630
OP: Kv-super "Just a question about an injury during dp1 infantry mod 2."

Reserve Force Compensation  
https://army.ca/forums/threads/114224.0
OP: "Class A reservist; initial injury on class A"


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## dapaterson (22 Sep 2017)

Not having all the details, I would say that you would normally be compensated under CBI 210.72 (Reserve Force Compensation), or GECA (Government Employees Compensation Act).  Look at the following links:

https://www.forces.gc.ca/en/caf-community-benefits-ill-injured-deceased/guide.page

https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/services/health-safety/compensation/geca.html


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## CountDC (22 Sep 2017)

Unfortunately way more common than it should be.  RFC will give you reserve pay for the period and there is an entire book of paperwork that has to be completed at the unit (maybe why you have an issue, some staff don't want to do their job in taking care of people).  If the unit is not coming through I suggest you contact your local JPSU for assistance as they can usually help (assuming the chain of command is aware of you issues and you have talked to the C Clk).

I am guessing you were not on Class B at the time of injury.  If you were then the unit messed up as they should have continued your class b and employed you there while they processed your RFC.  I always appreciate the extra free help from these cases. 

Of course there is always the redress route, sometimes even the mention of one gets action.


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## Lumber (22 Sep 2017)

Brihard said:
			
		

> Your sailor was drinking. My troop was on PT.



He wasn't drinking; he had just left the ship.


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## dapaterson (22 Sep 2017)

Lumber said:
			
		

> He wasn't drinking; he had just left the ship.



Then the decision from higher was wrong.  He was in that location solely because of his military employment.  Refusing compensation for an injury due to his military employment is wrong.


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## Lumber (22 Sep 2017)

dapaterson said:
			
		

> Then the decision from higher was wrong.  He was in that location solely because of his military employment.  Refusing compensation for an injury due to his military employment is wrong.



Well... he was on his way to drinking...

So are we saying that any time a member does PT, they could claim it was for FORCE Test preps, and demand Class-A pay since they were "on-duty", and if injured, apply for RFC?

Where do you draw the line? Some Class-A member who already gets high-gold/platinum on the FORCE test is on his 2nd work-out of the day. Clearly, he doesn't need to be working out this hard to simply pass the FORCE test. Is his own self-directed PT really part of a "program" to enable him to pass the FORCE test, thereby giving his PT a military nexus?


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## dapaterson (22 Sep 2017)

Lumber said:
			
		

> Well... he was on his way to drinking...
> 
> So are we saying that any time a member does PT, they could claim it was for FORCE Test preps, and demand Class-A pay since they were "on-duty", and if injured, apply for RFC?
> 
> Where do you draw the line? Some Class-A member who already gets high-gold/platinum on the FORCE test is on his 2nd work-out of the day. Clearly, he doesn't need to be working out this hard to simply pass the FORCE test. Is his own self-directed PT really part of a "program" to enable him to pass the FORCE test, thereby giving his PT a military nexus?



The "deeming" element of CBI 210.72 exists not to pay Res F members, but to provide them with coverage if injured when exercising.  But yes, if a member is injured while exercising and unable to work, then it is entirely reasonable for the CAF to compensate them until such time as they can resume employment.


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## Lumber (22 Sep 2017)

dapaterson said:
			
		

> The "deeming" element of CBI 210.72 exists not to pay Res F members, but to provide them with coverage if injured when exercising.  But yes, if a member is injured while exercising and unable to work, then it is entirely reasonable for the CAF to compensate them until such time as they can resume employment.



And I wonder what VAC would say...


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