- Labour market re-entry {LMR} (expenses)
- Expenses (licensing fees)
The worker suffered a shoulder injury in 2002, for which the Board granted the worker a 23% NEL award. The worker completed an LMR program to retrain as a paralegal, and has been working in that field since November 2006. Effective May 2007, new legislation required paralegals to complete an exam and licensing process. The worker appealed a decision of the Appeals Resolution Officer denying the worker reimbursement for the $500 cost of the examination and the $1,000 licensing fee.
Section 42 of the WSIA provides for labour market re-entry plans which are required for a worker to re-enter the labour market. Board Operational Policy Manual, Document No. 19-03-06, on LMR expenses, provides for payment of expenses relating to an LMR plan that the Board considers necessary and appropriate. It further states that all anticipated expenses or costs to be paid are to be set out in the LMR plan before it begins and that payment of expenses is discontinued once the plan is complete.In this case, the LMR plan was complete before the licensing process changed, and the worker had successfully re-entered the labour market, working in the profession for six months before the new licensing requirements were introduced.The worker was not entitled to reimbursement for the cost of the examination and licensing fees. The appeal was dismissed.