Lost-time wages shall be available only for inmates based at Bureau of Prisons institutions.

(a) When the institution safety manager receives notice, or has reason to believe, a work-related injury may result in time lost from the work assignment, he or she shall present BP-140, Pages 1 and 2 (with the appropriate sections completed) to the Institution Safety Committee at the Committee's next regularly scheduled meeting. The Safety Committee shall make a determination of the injury's work-relatedness based on the available evidence and testimony. The determination shall be recorded on BP-140, Page 2, a copy of which shall be provided to the inmate.

(b) A determination of work-relatedness for purposes of awarding lost-time wages is not confirmation on the validity of any subsequent claim to receive compensation for work-related physical impairment or death.

(a) An inmate worker may receive lost-time wages for the number of regular work hours absent from work due to injury sustained in the performance of the assigned work.

(b) Lost-time wages are paid for time lost in excess of three consecutively scheduled workdays. The day of injury is considered to be the first workday regardless of the time of injury.

(c) An inmate may receive lost-time wages at the rate of 75% of the standard hourly rate of the inmate's regular work assignment at the time of the injury.

(a) Once approved, the inmate shall receive lost-time wages until the inmate:

(1) Is released;

(2) Is transferred to another institution for reasons unrelated to the work injury;

(3) Returns to the pre-injury work assignment;

(4) Is reassigned to another work area or program for reasons unrelated to the sustained work injury, or is placed into Disciplinary Segregation; or,

(5) Refuses to return to a regular work assignment or to a lighter duty work assignment after medical certification of fitness for such duty.

(b) An inmate medically certified as fit for return to work shall sustain no monetary loss due to a required change in work assignment. Where there is no light duty or regular work assignment available at the same rate of pay as the inmate's pre-injury work assignment, the difference shall be paid in lost-time wages. Lost-time wages are paid until a light duty or regular work assignment at the same pay rate as the inmate's pre-injury work assignment is available.

An inmate who disagrees with the decision regarding payment of lost-time wages may appeal that decision exclusively through the Administrative Remedy Procedure. (See 28 CFR part 542.)