A 39-year-old auto mechanic has slight instability of the knee, no atrophy and a preclusion from heavy lifting. What is the level of permanent disability?

• A. 12 percent
• B. 19 percent
• C. 22 percent
• D. 25 percent

Answer: (C)

Permanent disability ratings take into account not just the anatomical impairment but also how that impairment affects the person’s ability to work, especially in a physically demanding job. In this scenario, the knee shows only slight instability and no muscle wasting, so the structural impairment is not severe. But being precluded from heavy lifting hits the worker’s earning capacity in a manual trade like auto repair. That vocational limitation elevates the overall disability rating beyond the raw impairment level because it directly reduces the type of work the person can perform. With modest knee impairment plus a clear work restriction from heavy labor, the rating commonly lands in the low-to-mid 20s, and 22 percent reflects this balance. A lower figure would understate the loss of earning capacity due to the job constraint, while a higher figure would imply more extensive injury than is described since there’s no atrophy and only slight instability.