July 30, 2007 : Shawn C. Gooden Earns Favorable Court Decision
Associate Shawn C. Gooden recently prevailed in a worker’s compensation case involving a contested average weekly wage. The claimant was originally hired in 1991. He worked until 2002, when he was furloughed during a plant-wide slowdown. In March 2004, he was recalled into a new position. In May 2004, Claimant sustained a work injury. Claimant had never been furloughed before and there was no foreseeable chance that Claimant would be furloughed in the future.
Claimant argued that his average weekly wage should be calculated using only his wages from March 2004 through the date of injury. By so doing, his average weekly wage would have been in excess of $790.00 per week. The Defense argued that because Claimant maintained his employment status with the employer, pursuant to Reifsnyder, it was appropriate to look back one year from the date of injury and include quarters of zero wages in calculating the average weekly wage. By so doing, Claimant's average weekly wage would only be $158.00 per week.
The WCJ agreed with the Defense, concluding that the relevant inquiry is whether or not the employment relationship was maintained. If so, the Judge must use quarters with zero wages in determining the average weekly wage. This victory saved the employer over $20,000 per year in indemnity benefits.
File Under: Results, Workers' Compensation, Shawn C. Gooden