Overview
How this affects your claim in practice
Under section 32A of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW), suitable employment is work for which the worker is currently suited after specified medical, personal, vocational and rehabilitation factors are considered. The definition expressly operates regardless of whether a particular job is actually available, whether that kind of work is generally available, the nature of the worker's pre-injury employment and the worker's place of residence. Those exclusions do not make medical restrictions or skills irrelevant, and they do not answer the separate question of how much the worker is able to earn in suitable employment.
- Current incapacity and medical information remain central to the statutory test.
- Age, education, skills, work experience, return-to-work plans and rehabilitation services are relevant.
- Actual vacancies, general labour-market availability and place of residence are expressly disregarded when deciding statutory suitability.
- A section 43 decision may separately estimate the amount a worker is able to earn in suitable employment.
- The current dispute options are an optional insurer review or a direct PIC application, not a mandatory section 44 ladder.
What section 32A requires and disregards
The statutory definition is more precise than an everyday view of whether a job seems practical. It asks whether the worker is currently suited to the employment after the listed factors are considered. An insurer should therefore identify the actual work, duties and assumptions rather than rely on a broad label such as "administration" or "customer service".
Current section 32A factors
| The decision must consider | The definition expressly disregards |
|---|---|
| The nature of the worker's incapacity and medical information, including information in certificates of capacity. | Whether the work or employment is actually available. |
| Age, education, skills and work experience. | Whether that type of employment is generally available in the employment market. |
| Any return-to-work plan, workplace rehabilitation services and matters in the applicable Guidelines. | The nature of the worker's pre-injury employment and the worker's place of residence. |
Source: Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW), section 32A, current at 19 July 2026. The exclusions above are part of the statutory definition and should not be replaced by a general "real labour market" test.
Do not merge suitability and earning ability into one question
Section 43 treats a decision about suitable employment and a decision about the amount a worker is able to earn in suitable employment as related but distinct work capacity decisions. A role can therefore raise two different disputes: whether the worker is currently suited to it under section 32A, and whether the insurer has reasonably estimated the earnings the worker could obtain from it.
Vacancy, wage and labour-market material may be relevant to the separate earning-ability calculation or to testing the factual assumptions in a vocational report. It should not be presented as a statutory requirement that the insurer prove a local vacancy before employment can be "suitable" under section 32A.
Evidence to organise by disputed issue
| Issue | Evidence that may help |
|---|---|
| Medical suitability | Certificates and treating reports addressing tasks, hours, pace, concentration, medication effects, reliability and risk of aggravation. |
| Skills and experience | Current licences, qualifications, employment history, language or computer skills, and evidence of any retraining needed. |
| Return to work and rehabilitation | Return-to-work plans, functional assessments, rehabilitation notes, work trials and records of why a proposed arrangement succeeded or failed. |
| Ability to earn | The insurer calculation, assumed hours and wage rate, vocational material, payslips and evidence answering the earnings assumptions. |
| Notice and dispute pathway | The complete section 43 decision, relied-on reports, notice period, effective date and proof of receipt. |
What a work trial can and cannot establish
A short host placement or work trial may provide useful functional evidence, but it does not automatically establish sustainable capacity or a particular earning amount. Record the duties, duration, supervision, breaks, modifications, productivity expectations, symptoms and recovery after the trial.
Evidence that a worker completed a few modified hours may not establish capacity for ordinary hours or wages. Conversely, discomfort alone does not automatically make duties unsuitable; the medical and functional evidence still needs to address the tasks and risks.
Current review options after a work capacity decision
SIRA states that a worker may request an optional insurer review or proceed directly to the Personal Injury Commission (PIC). The former statutory section 44 internal-review ladder was repealed in 2018.
If the worker requests the optional insurer review, SIRA says a different person conducts it and the insurer must respond in writing within 14 days after receiving the request. That 14-day period is not a universal deadline for the worker. The notice period and effective date in the actual decision should be checked promptly because a PIC application lodged before the notice period expires may temporarily stay the decision.
Official sources
Sources are listed for transparency. This guide is general information only and is not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Must the insurer prove there is a vacancy near my home?
Not as part of the section 32A definition of suitable employment. Actual availability, general labour-market availability and place of residence are expressly disregarded. Job and wage material may still be relevant to a separate estimate of earning ability.
Can the insurer rely on a job I have never performed?
Potentially, but it must still address the section 32A factors, including current incapacity, medical information, age, education, skills, work experience, return-to-work planning and rehabilitation. A job title alone does not establish suitability.
What if an old licence or qualification has expired?
Provide the expiry date, current training requirement and evidence of your actual recent skills. Education, skills and work experience are relevant statutory factors.
Is an insurer review mandatory before PIC?
No. Current SIRA guidance says the insurer review is optional and a worker may proceed directly to PIC.
Does a brief work trial prove full earning capacity?
Not automatically. Its weight depends on the duties, hours, modifications, productivity, symptoms, recovery and how closely the conditions match the insurer's ongoing work and earnings assumptions.
Received a suitable-employment finding?
If the insurer has identified different work or changed its estimate of your earning ability, consider obtaining advice about the statutory factors, calculation and review options in your notice.