How this injury happens at work.
- Kneeling work — flooring, tile, plumbing, mechanics, roofing
- Twisting under load in warehouses and delivery
- Falls from ladders and steps
- Direct blows from carts, pallets, and equipment
- Years of climbing and squatting
The injuries we see.
- Meniscus tear
- ACL, PCL, and collateral ligament injury
- Patellar fracture and dislocation
- Prepatellar bursitis from kneeling
- Aggravated osteoarthritis
- Total knee replacement in older workers
Report it, then file it.
California workers’ compensation runs on fixed deadlines, and the carrier will use every one you miss. Report the injury to your employer in writing, ask for the DWC-1 claim form, keep a copy of everything, and get to a doctor the same day if you can. The deadline calculator on our home page shows how long is left on each clock from your date of injury.
Treatment and your right to a doctor.
MRI, arthroscopy, ligament reconstruction, and in older workers total knee replacement. Utilization review fights knee MRIs; we appeal and build the record.
All treatment reasonably required to cure or relieve the injury is covered — no co-pay, no deductible, no lifetime cap. For the first 30 days you generally treat within the employer’s medical provider network unless you pre-designated your own physician; after that you can change treating doctors within the network, and disputes over diagnosis or disability go to a Qualified Medical Evaluator. Utilization-review denials can be appealed through Independent Medical Review within 30 days.
Two claims, not one.
Workers’ compensation
Medical care, temporary disability at two-thirds of your average weekly wage, permanent disability, and retraining. Your employer can’t be sued — that immunity is the bargain.
Whoever else caused it
Defective ladders and scaffolds, or hazards on a site someone else controls, add a civil defendant.
Both cases run at the same time. You do not choose between them, and the two-year civil statute keeps running whether or not the workers’ comp claim is filed.
Permanent disability and what it’s worth.
Rated on motion, stability, and the surgical outcome. Permanent restrictions on kneeling, squatting, and climbing are common and often end a trade.
Once you reach maximum medical improvement, the treating physician or the medical-legal evaluator writes a report that is converted to a permanent disability rating and a weekly benefit. Cases then resolve by Compromise & Release for a lump sum, by Stipulated award with future medical care left open, or by trial before a workers’ compensation judge. If your employer can’t offer work within your permanent restrictions, you are also entitled to a Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit voucher for retraining and the Return-to-Work Supplement.
What the carrier will try.
- Calling every knee “degenerative”
- Delaying the MRI with months of therapy
- Sending you to modified duty that still requires kneeling
- Apportioning the rating to weight or age
Questions we hear first.
My knee was already worn. Is the tear still covered?
Yes. Aggravation of a pre-existing condition by work is compensable. Degeneration may affect apportionment of the permanent disability rating, not whether the claim is accepted.
How long am I off work after knee surgery?
Arthroscopy commonly means weeks; reconstruction or replacement commonly means months. Temporary disability continues while you are unable to work and still improving.
Is bursitis from kneeling a real claim?
Yes. Prepatellar bursitis from kneeling work is a recognized cumulative trauma injury.
General information about California law, not legal advice about your case. Statutes cited: Labor Code §§ 4600, 4650, 4658.7, 4906, 5400, 5401, 5402, 5405; Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1. Every case turns on its own facts — call for a free consultation.