The Wisconsin workers compensation act — formally the Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation Act (Wisconsin uses the singular “Worker’s”; codified as Wis. Stat. Chapter 102, “Worker’s Compensation”), found at Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 102 (Wis. Stat. §§ 102.01–102.89) — is the statute behind every workers’ comp claim, benefit and employer mandate in the state.
This plain-English guide to the Wisconsin workers compensation act gives the section numbers next to the rules people actually need: who must be covered, the deadlines, the waiting period, the pay rate, the exclusive-remedy bargain, the ban on retaliation and the penalties. Verified against the official code as of October 2026.
Wisconsin at a Glance
| Official name | Worker’s Compensation Act (Wisconsin uses the singular “Worker’s”; codified as Wis. Stat. Chapter 102, “Worker’s Compensation”) |
| Where it lives | Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 102 (Wis. Stat. §§ 102.01–102.89) |
| First enacted | 1911 |
| Reporting deadline | 30 days after the injury, or 30 days after the employee knew or should have known the disability was related to work, under Wis. Stat. § 102.12. A late claim may still go forward if the employer had actual knowledge, or in some cases if the notice came within 2 years and the employer was not misled. |
| Filing deadline | 12 years from the date of injury or death, or 12 years from the last payment of compensation other than treatment or burial expenses, under Wis. Stat. § 102.17(4). Certain occupational-disease and traumatic-injury claims have no time limit under § 102.17(4). Confirm with DWD. |
| Exclusive remedy | Wis. Stat. § 102.03(2) — workers’ comp is the exclusive remedy against the employer, co-employees and the employer’s comp insurer. Main statutory exception: a lawsuit against a co-employee for an assault intended to cause bodily harm. Other exceptions are a co-employee’s negligent driving of a vehicle the employer does not own or lease, and certain governmental-unit indemnity situations. |
| Recent amendments | (1) 2025 Wisconsin Act 33, effective January 1, 2026: moved the worker’s comp hearing office from DOA’s Division of Hearings and Appeals to DWD’s Worker’s Compensation Division. (2) 2025 Wisconsin Act 145, effective April 1, 2026: raised the maximum weekly PPD rate to 454 for injuries on or after April 1, 2026 and to 462 for injuries on or after January 1, 2027. It also: limits hearing applications to cases with an actual dispute; drops the restricted-bank-account rule for settlement proceeds; lets APRNs and PAs, and audiologists in hearing-loss cases, give opinions on cause and extent of disability; widens supplemental benefits, which rise each January 1 and now reach workers injured before January 1, 2020 and Second Injury Fund PTD recipients; extends PTSD coverage to all firefighters, EMS practitioners and emergency medical responders, paid or volunteer; raises uninsured-employer assessments and forfeitures; and makes fraudulent comp-insurance applications and employee misclassification criminal insurance fraud. |
In This Wisconsin Guide:
What the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act Is
A workers’ compensation act is a no-fault deal written into state law: the employer pays for work injuries without the worker proving fault, and the worker gives up most lawsuits against the employer in return. The Wisconsin workers compensation act dates to 1911. It lives at Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 102 (Wis. Stat. §§ 102.01–102.89), and the official text is linked in the sources.
(1) Wisconsin enacted the first workers’ comp law in the U.S. that survived a constitutional challenge, in 1911. (2) The § 102.35(3) unreasonable-refusal-to-rehire penalty is paid by the employer, not the insurer, and is capped at 1 year’s wages. (3) The statute of limitations is unusually long: 12 years under § 102.17(4). (4) Supplemental benefits for long-term permanent total disability now rise each year under Act 145.
Your state generally pays according to the rules in effect on your date of injury; confirm with DWD and a licensed attorney.
Who the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act Covers
Wis. Stat. § 102.04(1)(b) — an employer is covered once it usually employs 3 or more employees in Wisconsin, or once it has fewer than 3 but paid wages of 500 or more in any calendar quarter (covered from the 10th day of the following month). Farmers have a separate threshold under § 102.04(1)(c). § 102.28(2) requires covered employers to insure or be approved to self-insure. Wis.
Stat. § 102.04 (who counts as an employer, including the separate farmer threshold) and § 102.07 (who counts as an employee and who is excluded, such as certain domestic servants, casual workers and independent contractors who meet the statutory test). Confirm the exact sub-paragraphs with DWD.
Deadlines in the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act
Waiting period: Wis. Stat. § 102.43 — 3-day waiting period. Indemnity starts on the 4th calendar day after the worker leaves work, not counting Sundays unless the worker works Sundays. If the disability lasts more than 7 calendar days, the first 3 days are paid too.. Wage-loss rate: Wis. Stat. § 102.43(1) — temporary total disability pays two-thirds (66⅔%) of average weekly earnings.
The annual maximum and minimum weekly rates are set under § 102.11; check DWD for the current-year figure..
Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act: Key Sections at a Glance
The sections of the Wisconsin workers compensation act that decide most cases, each with its citation:
| Coverage mandate | Wis. Stat. § 102.04(1)(b) — an employer is covered once it usually employs 3 or more employees in Wisconsin, or once it has fewer than 3 but paid wages of 500 or more in any calendar quarter (covered from the 10th day of the following month). Farmers have a separate threshold under § 102.04(1)(c). § 102.28(2) requires covered employers to insure or be approved to self-insure. |
| Exemptions | Wis. Stat. § 102.04 (who counts as an employer, including the separate farmer threshold) and § 102.07 (who counts as an employee and who is excluded, such as certain domestic servants, casual workers and independent contractors who meet the statutory test). Confirm the exact sub-paragraphs with DWD. |
| Report an injury | 30 days after the injury, or 30 days after the employee knew or should have known the disability was related to work, under Wis. Stat. § 102.12. A late claim may still go forward if the employer had actual knowledge, or in some cases if the notice came within 2 years and the employer was not misled. |
| File a claim | 12 years from the date of injury or death, or 12 years from the last payment of compensation other than treatment or burial expenses, under Wis. Stat. § 102.17(4). Certain occupational-disease and traumatic-injury claims have no time limit under § 102.17(4). Confirm with DWD. |
| Waiting period | Wis. Stat. § 102.43 — 3-day waiting period. Indemnity starts on the 4th calendar day after the worker leaves work, not counting Sundays unless the worker works Sundays. If the disability lasts more than 7 calendar days, the first 3 days are paid too. |
| Wage-loss rate | Wis. Stat. § 102.43(1) — temporary total disability pays two-thirds (66⅔%) of average weekly earnings. The annual maximum and minimum weekly rates are set under § 102.11; check DWD for the current-year figure. |
| Exclusive remedy | Wis. Stat. § 102.03(2) — workers’ comp is the exclusive remedy against the employer, co-employees and the employer’s comp insurer. Main statutory exception: a lawsuit against a co-employee for an assault intended to cause bodily harm. Other exceptions are a co-employee’s negligent driving of a vehicle the employer does not own or lease, and certain governmental-unit indemnity situations. |
| Retaliation | Wis. Stat. § 102.35(3) — an employer who refuses without reasonable cause to rehire an injured employee, when suitable work within the worker’s limits is available, owes the wages lost during the refusal, up to 1 year’s wages. The employer pays this itself; insurance cannot cover it. It is paid on top of other benefits. |
| Uninsured employer penalty | Wis. Stat. § 102.82 (payments to the Uninsured Employers Fund) and § 102.85 (forfeitures). Under 2025 Wisconsin Act 145, for violations on or after April 1, 2026: (1) Assessments: for a 1st or 2nd violation, the greater of 2 times the unpaid premium or 750; for a 3rd violation, the greater of 3 times the premium or 3000; for a 4th or later violation, the greater of 4 times the premium or 4000. (2) Forfeitures: 1st violation, the greater of 1000 or the premium; 2nd, the greater of 2000 or 2 times the premium; 3rd, the greater of 3000 or 3 times the premium; 4th or later, the greater of 4000 or 4 times the premium. |
| Who hears disputes | Wis. Stat. §§ 102.16–102.17 (hearings) and § 102.18 (findings, orders and appeals). Administrative law judges hear disputed claims. Since January 1, 2026, those judges sit in the Worker’s Compensation Division of the Department of Workforce Development; 2025 Wisconsin Act 33 moved them there from DOA’s Division of Hearings and Appeals. Decisions can be appealed to the Labor and Industry Review Commission (LIRC), then to circuit court. |
The Exclusive-Remedy Bargain in the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act
Wis. Stat. § 102.03(2) — workers’ comp is the exclusive remedy against the employer, co-employees and the employer’s comp insurer. Main statutory exception: a lawsuit against a co-employee for an assault intended to cause bodily harm. Other exceptions are a co-employee’s negligent driving of a vehicle the employer does not own or lease, and certain governmental-unit indemnity situations.
Retaliation and Penalties Under the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act
Wis. Stat. § 102.35(3) — an employer who refuses without reasonable cause to rehire an injured employee, when suitable work within the worker’s limits is available, owes the wages lost during the refusal, up to 1 year’s wages. The employer pays this itself; insurance cannot cover it. It is paid on top of other benefits. Wis. Stat. § 102.82 (payments to the Uninsured Employers Fund) and § 102.85 (forfeitures).
Under 2025 Wisconsin Act 145, for violations on or after April 1, 2026: (1) Assessments: for a 1st or 2nd violation, the greater of 2 times the unpaid premium or 750; for a 3rd violation, the greater of 3 times the premium or 3000; for a 4th or later violation, the greater of 4 times the premium or 4000.
(2) Forfeitures: 1st violation, the greater of 1000 or the premium; 2nd, the greater of 2000 or 2 times the premium; 3rd, the greater of 3000 or 3 times the premium; 4th or later, the greater of 4000 or 4 times the premium. Wis. Stat. §§ 102.16–102.17 (hearings) and § 102.18 (findings, orders and appeals). Administrative law judges hear disputed claims.
Since January 1, 2026, those judges sit in the Worker’s Compensation Division of the Department of Workforce Development; 2025 Wisconsin Act 33 moved them there from DOA’s Division of Hearings and Appeals. Decisions can be appealed to the Labor and Industry Review Commission (LIRC), then to circuit court.
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Recent Amendments to the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act
(1) 2025 Wisconsin Act 33, effective January 1, 2026: moved the worker’s comp hearing office from DOA’s Division of Hearings and Appeals to DWD’s Worker’s Compensation Division. (2) 2025 Wisconsin Act 145, effective April 1, 2026: raised the maximum weekly PPD rate to 454 for injuries on or after April 1, 2026 and to 462 for injuries on or after January 1, 2027.
It also: limits hearing applications to cases with an actual dispute; drops the restricted-bank-account rule for settlement proceeds; lets APRNs and PAs, and audiologists in hearing-loss cases, give opinions on cause and extent of disability; widens supplemental benefits, which rise each January 1 and now reach workers injured before January 1, 2020 and Second Injury Fund PTD recipients; extends PTSD coverage to all firefighters, EMS practitioners and emergency medical responders,
paid or volunteer; raises uninsured-employer assessments and forfeitures; and makes fraudulent comp-insurance applications and employee misclassification criminal insurance fraud.
How to Read the Wisconsin Workers Compensation Act
Statute pages are written for lawyers, so read the Wisconsin workers compensation act in this order: the definitions section (who is an employee), the coverage section, then the specific section for your question, using the citations above. The official code is the source; the summaries on legal-information sites are not.
If a section of the Wisconsin workers compensation act seems to conflict with what an insurer told you, the section wins — and the state agency’s information line can confirm it for free.
Applying the act: the Wisconsin claim guide turns these sections into steps and dates, and the Wisconsin requirements guide covers the employer side.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Wisconsin workers compensation act in the code?
Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 102 (Wis. Stat. §§ 102.01–102.89). The sources below link to the official text.
How long do I have to report a work injury under the Wisconsin act?
30 days after the injury, or 30 days after the employee knew or should have known the disability was related to work, under Wis. Stat. § 102.12. A late claim may still go forward if the employer had actual knowledge, or in some cases if the notice came within 2 years and the employer was not misled.. Report in writing as soon as possible either way.
Can I sue my employer instead of using the Wisconsin workers compensation act?
Usually not — the exclusive-remedy section bars most lawsuits against a covered employer. Claims against third parties, and against an uninsured employer, are the common exceptions.
Official Wisconsin Sources & Resources
- Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD), Worker’s Compensation Division. Appeals go to the Labor and Industry Review Commission (LIRC).: https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/wc/
- Wisconsin Workers’ Comp Statute: https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/102
- U.S. Department of Labor — Workers’ Comp: dol.gov
- Insurance Information Institute: iii.org
This Wisconsin workers compensation act guide was last verified against official Wisconsin sources in October 2026. Rules change — confirm the current figure with the state agency or a licensed attorney.
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Disclaimer: This guide is informational only and is not legal, medical, or financial advice. Workers Comp Explained is an independent educational resource, not a law firm or insurer. Workers’ comp benefits, settlement values, deadlines, and requirements vary by state and by the specific facts of your injury and change over time, and any settlement figures here are illustrative only.
Confirm your rights and any deadline with your state’s workers’ compensation board and a licensed attorney before you act.