Workers' comp in California cities

Workers' compensation in San Diego

By the Work Injury Compass editorial team · Last updated November 2026 · How we write and check guides

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The San Diego district office

San Diego district office (DWC / WCAB): 7575 Metropolitan Drive, Suite 202, San Diego, CA 92108-4424. Phone 619-767-2083. Official page: San Diego district office.

According to DWC's office page, free parking is available in front of the building, and the court lobby opens 30 minutes before each session, five days a week. Sign-in sheets are on the small table near the reception window. There's no food service in the building, but the shopping center behind it has options. The office is served by San Diego's Metropolitan Transit System buses. Documents can be date-stamped and filed at the reception desk, and walk-throughs are accepted Monday to Friday, 8 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 4 p.m.

The office has an Information & Assistance unit and a Disability Evaluation Unit. DWC's ZIP code list assigns every San Diego County ZIP to this office. Venue for your Application for Adjudication can also be where you were injured or, if you have one, where your lawyer's principal office is (Labor Code §5501.5).

How hearings work here

Since March 3, 2025, DWC holds status conferences, mandatory settlement conferences, priority conferences and lien conferences on a video platform, with each judge's virtual courtroom link on DWC's website and on the hearing notice. Trials, lien trials and expedited hearings are still set in person. Court is in session from 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1:30 to 5 p.m. If you're unrepresented, the I&A officer can explain what each kind of hearing is for and help you prepare. DWC also lists monthly video workshops for injured workers (first Friday in English, third Friday in Spanish, 3 p.m.). See the WCAB process.

San Diego jobs and the injuries they bring

• Shipbuilding and ship repair along the bay: welding burns, falls, crush injuries, hearing loss, and exposure to fumes and solvents. As with other waterfront work, some shipyard and maritime workers are also covered by the federal Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act. Ask early which system applies to your job.
• Defense contractors and the military: civilian contractor employees are covered by California workers' comp through their employer. Federal civilian employees (for example, Navy civilian staff) are not; they're covered by a separate federal program. Active-duty service members are covered by the military's own system.
• Biotech and research labs: chemical and biological exposures, needle-sticks, and repetitive-strain injuries from pipetting and microscope work. Exposure illnesses use the "knew or should have known" date of injury (Labor Code §5412).
• Tourism, hotels and restaurants: housekeeping back and shoulder injuries, kitchen burns and cuts, and slip-and-falls. These jobs are often seasonal or part-time, which can affect your average weekly earnings (see TD calculation).
• Construction across the county: falls, struck-by injuries, and heat.
• North County agriculture and nurseries: heat illness, pesticide exposure, ladder falls and repetitive picking injuries. See heat illness.
• Warehouses and cross-border logistics in Otay Mesa: lifting injuries, forklift accidents and trucking crashes.

Heat away from the coast

The coast is mild, but East County, inland North County and the desert areas get very hot in summer and early fall. Cal/OSHA's outdoor heat rule (tit. 8, §3395) requires shade at 80°F and high-heat procedures at 95°F. Its indoor heat rule (tit. 8, §3396) covers hot warehouses and kitchens. Heat illness from work is a work injury.

If you live in Mexico and work in San Diego

California workers' comp covers employees injured on the job in California, wherever they live. Practical points for cross-border workers:

• Report the injury and file the DWC-1 like anyone else, and give the employer a mailing address where you reliably get mail.
• Medical care for the claim generally goes through your employer's insurer and its California network, so plan for appointments on this side of the border. Mileage is reimbursable (mileage calculator).
• Your case can be heard in San Diego because that's where the injury happened (Labor Code §5501.5).
• Immigration status doesn't affect your right to benefits (Labor Code §1171.5; see undocumented workers' rights).

Steps after a work injury in San Diego

1. Tell your supervisor in writing as soon as possible; the legal limit is 30 days (Labor Code §5400).
2. Ask for, complete and return the DWC-1 claim form. Keep a dated copy.
3. Treat with a doctor in your employer's MPN if it has one (choosing a doctor). Up to $10,000 in care must be authorized while the claim is pending.
4. If you're off work, temporary disability should start within 14 days (2026 injuries: $264.61 to $1,764.11 a week).
5. Keep the 90-day decision period and the one-year WCAB deadline in mind (deadlines).
6. For help: I&A at the Mission Valley office, or our San Diego County attorney directory.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Every case is different. For free help from the state, call the DWC Information & Assistance unit at 1-800-736-7401.