Title 5 › Part PART III— - EMPLOYEES › Subpart Subpart G— - Insurance and Annuities › Chapter CHAPTER 81— - COMPENSATION FOR WORK INJURIES › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - GENERALLY › § 8118
The United States must keep paying an employee who files a timely claim for lost wages after a traumatic injury. The employee must be the kind described in 5 U.S.C. 8101(1), excluding those in clauses (B) or (E). The claim must go to the worker’s immediate supervisor on a form the Secretary of Labor approves and must meet the time limit in 5 U.S.C. 8122(a)(2). Continued pay is given without interruption unless disputed, can last no more than 45 days, and follows accounting and other rules the Secretary sets. An employee may use their available annual or sick leave while disabled, but disability compensation and related time rules do not start until the continued pay ends or the leave stops. If the Secretary denies the claim, the employee can choose to have the payments charged to annual or sick leave or treated as an overpayment under 5 U.S.C. 5584. These payments are not counted as “compensation” under 5 U.S.C. 8101(12).
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Government Organization and Employees — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
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Citation
5 U.S.C. § 8118
Title 5 — Government Organization and Employees
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73