(a) 5 U.S.C. 8115 outlines how compensation for partial disability
is determined. If the employee has actual earnings which fairly and
reasonably represent his or her wage-earning capacity, those earnings
may form the basis for payment of compensation for partial disability.
(See Secs. 10.500 through 10.520 concerning return to work.) If the
employee's actual earnings do not fairly and reasonably represent his or
her wage-earning capacity, or if the employee has no actual earnings,
OWCP uses the factors stated in 5 U.S.C. 8115 to select a position which
represents his or her wage-earning capacity. However, OWCP will not
secure employment for the employee in the position selected for
establishing a wage-earning capacity.
(b) Compensation for partial disability is payable as a percentage
of the difference between the employee's pay rate for compensation
purposes and the employee's wage-earning capacity. The percentage is
66\2/3\ percent of this difference if the employee has no dependents, or
75 percent of this difference if the employee has at least one
dependent.
(c) The formula which OWCP uses to compute the compensation payable
for partial disability employs the following terms: Pay rate for
compensation purposes, which is defined in Sec. 10.5(s) of this part;
current pay rate, which means the salary or wages for the job held at
the time of injury at the time of the determination; and earnings, which
means the employee's actual earnings, or the salary or pay rate of the
position selected by OWCP as representing the employee's wage-earning
capacity.
(d) The employee's wage-earning capacity in terms of percentage is
computed by dividing the employee's earnings by the current pay rate.
The comparison of earnings and ``current'' pay rate for the job held at
the time of injury need not be made as of the beginning of partial
disability. OWCP may use any convenient date for making the comparison
as long as both wage rates are in effect on the date used for
comparison.
(e) The employee's wage-earning capacity in terms of dollars is
computed by first multiplying the pay rate for compensation purposes by
the percentage of wage-earning capacity. The resulting dollar amount is
then subtracted from the pay rate for compensation purposes to obtain
the employee's loss of wage-earning capacity.
