My Employer Says Light Duty Is Available, But the Job Doesn’t Really Exist — What Are My Rights in Virginia?

You are recovering from a workplace injury in Virginia, collecting workers’ compensation benefits, and your employer tells you a light duty job is available. But when you show up, there is nothing for you to do. The position has no real tasks, no clear purpose, and nobody seems to know what you are supposed to be doing. Sound familiar?

This is one of the most frustrating experiences injured workers face in Virginia. A made up light duty job in Virginia workers’ compensation is a position that looks real on paper but has no substance in practice. Employers use these phantom positions to justify cutting off your benefits, and it happens more often than you might expect.

Why Employers Create Phantom Light Duty Positions

The motivation is financial. Under Virginia Code § 65.2-510, when an employer offers selective employment within your medical restrictions and you accept it, your temporary total disability (TTD) benefits can be reduced or eliminated. Even if you refuse the offer, the employer can petition the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission to suspend your benefits for unjustified refusal.

This creates a powerful incentive for employers and their insurance carriers to put a light duty offer on the table — even when there is no genuine work to be done. By creating a position in name only, the employer gains leverage to reduce its workers’ compensation costs.

How to Tell If the Light Duty Job Is Real

There is a difference between a genuine light duty position and one that exists only to manipulate your claim. Ask yourself these questions:

• Are you given actual work to do each day? If you spend your shifts sitting idle, watching videos on repeat, or waiting for tasks that never come, the job may not be genuine.
• Did this position exist before your injury? If it was created immediately after your claim, that is a red flag.
• Does anyone else do this job? If you are the only person who has ever held the position, and no one fills it when you are absent, the position may lack substance.
• Does the job description match reality? If you were told you would be answering phones but the phone never rings, or you were told you would file paperwork but there is no paperwork to file, the written description does not reflect a real job.
• Is the position productive? Genuine selective employment contributes something to the employer’s business operations. A position with no productive output is suspect.

What the Virginia Workers’ Comp Commission Considers

If a dispute arises over whether a light duty offer constitutes bona fide selective employment, the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission evaluates the totality of the circumstances. Key factors include:

• Whether the position has genuine, productive duties
• Whether the position existed before the worker’s injury
• Whether the duties align with the worker’s medical restrictions
• Whether the employer has a pattern of creating similar positions for injured workers
• Whether the job would exist regardless of the workers’ compensation claim

The burden is on the employer to demonstrate that the offered employment is legitimate. If the Commission determines the position is not bona fide, your benefits should continue.

What You Should Do Right Now

If you are sitting in a light duty position that has no real work, here is what I recommend:

1. Keep a detailed daily log. Write down exactly what you are asked to do each day, how long tasks take, and how much time you spend idle. This evidence can be critical before the Commission.
2. Do not quit. Walking away from the position, even if it feels pointless, can be characterized as a voluntary refusal of selective employment, which could endanger your benefits.
3. Communicate with your doctor. Make sure your treating physician knows what you are actually doing (or not doing) on the job. If the position is causing stress or worsening your condition, your doctor should document that.
4. Request a written job description. If you do not already have one, ask for a formal description of your light duty duties, including specific tasks, reporting structure, and performance expectations.
5. Contact a workers’ comp attorney. An experienced Virginia workers’ compensation lawyer can evaluate whether the position is genuine and take appropriate legal action if it is not.

You Deserve a Real Job — Not a Scheme to Cut Your Benefits

Workers’ compensation light duty in Virginia is supposed to help you transition back to productive work while you recover. It is not supposed to be a corporate cost-cutting tool disguised as employment. If your employer has placed you in a position that exists only on paper, you do not have to accept that outcome.

At Lugar Injury Law, I fight for injured workers who are dealing with made up light duty jobs and other tactics designed to undermine their claims. Contact me today for a free consultation.