§ 49-BB — Waiting period; date of disablement; payment of compensation

§ 49-bb. Waiting period; date of disablement; payment of compensation.\nNotwithstanding any other inconsistent provisions of this chapter,\ncompensation for occupational loss of hearing shall become due and\npayable at the employee's choice three months after (1) removal from\nexposure to harmful noise in employment (removal from exposure to\nharmful noise in employment for the three month waiting period may be\nachieved by use of effective ear protection devices provided at the\nexpense of the employer) or (2) separation from work for the last\nemployer in whose employment the employee was at anytime during such\nemployment exposed to harmful noise. The last day of such period of\nremoval from such exposure or of separation from such work shall be the\ndate of disablement. Such disablement shall be treated as the happening\nof an accident within the meaning of this chapter and the procedure and\npractice provided in the chapter shall apply to all proceedings as set\nforth in this article except where specifically otherwise provided\nherein. A claim for loss of hearing under this article shall not be\nbarred by the failure of the employee or the employee's dependents to\nfile a claim within the two year period prescribed by section\ntwenty-eight of this chapter, provided such claim shall be filed after\nsuch two year period within ninety days after knowledge that the loss of\nhearing is or was due to the nature of the employment. An employee whose\ndisablement and knowledge of disablement occurred prior to October\nfirst, nineteen hundred eighty shall have six months from such date to\nfile a claim. The former average wage on which the compensation rate\npayable shall be based shall be determined, as provided in sections\nfourteen and fourteen-a of this chapter, by the wages earned by the\nemployee during the year prior to the employee's last day of work in the\nlast employment in which the employee was exposed to harmful noise.\n