On May 6, 2020, the Alabama Secretary of Labor, Fitzgerald Washington, determined, pursuant to Alabama Code Section 25-5-68(c), that the State of Alabama’s average weekly wage for 2019 was $920.07. Based on this determination, Steve Garrett, Director of the Alabama Department of Labor Workers’ Compensation Division, issued a memorandum on May 11, 2020 stating the maximum workers’ compensation payable to injured workers is increased to $920.00 per week and the minimum is increased to $253.00 per week. The new rates take effect July 1, 2020, and apply to injuries occurring on or after that date.  

Alabama’s average weekly wage is determined in accordance with Alabama Code Section 25-5-68(b), based on the following formula: “the total wages reported on contribution reports to the unemployment compensation division of the department for the preceding calendar year shall be divided by the average monthly number of insured workers, which shall be determined by dividing the sum of the number of insured workers reported for each month of the preceding year by 12. The average annual wage thus obtained shall be divided by 52, and the average weekly wage thus determined rounded to the nearest cent.” The States’ average weekly wage for 2019 increased by $28.39 over the 2018 average weekly wage of $891.68.  The average weekly wage increased from 2018 to 2019 was the largest increase since at least 2007.