Piney Woods Country Life Sch. V. Young
| Docket Number: | 2005-WC-01839-COA Linked Case(s): 2005-CT-01839-SCT2005-WC-01839-COA |
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| Oral Argument: | 05-09-2006 | |
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| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 08-08-2006 Opinion Author: SOUTHWICK, J. Holding: Affirmed in Part, Reversed & Remanded in Part |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Workers’ compensation - Loss of wage earning capacity - Average weekly wage Judge(s) Concurring: KING, C.J., LEE AND MYERS, P.JJ., IRVING, CHANDLER, GRIFFIS, BARNES, ISHEE AND ROBERTS, JJ. Procedural History: Admin or Agency Judgment Nature of the Case: CIVIL - WORKERS' COMPENSATION |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 09-09-2005 Appealed from: RANKIN COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT Judge: William E. Chapman, III Disposition: AFFIRMED WORKERS’ COMPENSATION COMMISSION DECISION Case Number: 2005-142© |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | PINEY WOODS COUNTRY LIFE SCHOOL,
LEGION INSURANCE COMPANY (IN
LIQUIDATION) AND MISSISSIPPI INSURANCE
GUARANTY ASSOCIATION (AS SUCCESSOR IN
INTEREST) |
ROBERT LEE GRANT |
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| Appellee: | JUDY ANN YOUNG | JOHN HUNTER STEVENS |
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| Topic: | Workers’ compensation - Loss of wage earning capacity - Average weekly wage |
| Summary of the Facts: | Judy Ann Young sustained a work-related injury in the course of her full-time employment position at Piney Woods School (she also worked as a part-time house parent when situations arose requiring her to do so). The Workers’ Compensation Commission calculated Young’s average weekly wage on only her salary for the full-time position. The circuit court affirmed the decision of the Commission. Piney Woods appeals the determination of Young’s earning capacity and Young cross-appeals the determination of average weekly wage. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Issue 1: Loss of earning capacity Piney Woods argues that the Commission erred in finding that Young’s post-injury wages as a part-time cook were indicative of her current wage-earning capacity in her usual occupation as teacher and day care director. Loss of wage-earning capacity takes into account training, education, inability to work, not being hired by other employers, continuance of pain, and other related circumstances, and the decision should be made only after the evidence is considered as a whole. Young reported for work at Piney Woods upon being released, but she was notified that her position had been terminated. Young applied for the pre-school director position but was not hired. Young received a bachelor’s degree in education from Jackson State University but is not certified as a teacher. She has twice failed a teacher certification test. Young is currently employed as a part-time cook, working around nine hours per week at $9.00 per hour with an employer that accommodates her restrictions. Young had been paid $26,368 annually for her full-time position at Piney Woods, which is a weekly wage of about $507. The Commission held that Young was unable to earn more than $241 per week and sustained a loss of wage-earning capacity of $265.88 per week. Piney Woods’ vocational expert’s opinion sustained that Young could earn from $206 to $480 per week. The post-injury earning capacity finding of $241 is consistent with the testimony of Piney Woods’ own expert. Thus, there is substantial evidence to support the existence of permanent injury, the level of disability that it caused, and the calculation of earning capacity. Issue 2: Average weekly wage Young argues that her former earnings as a part-time employee at Piney Woods should have been included in calculating average weekly wage. There is nothing in statute or precedent to prevent the inclusion of all wages from the same employer in determining average weekly wage for an injured employer. Whether the other position in which a claimant was not engaged at the moment of injury was one in which the claimant should be considered as being contemporaneously employed needs to be determined as a matter of fact. Among the problems with the conclusion reached by the Commission is that if an employee is injured while working in the lesser-paying, part-time position, the benefits received would be dramatically less than if the same injury occurs in the higher-paying, full-time position. Such arbitrariness in result serves no purpose under the workers’ compensation scheme. Whether Piney Woods paid premiums on the wages Young earned could also be a consideration in determining Young’s average weekly wage. Thus, this issue is reversed and remanded to the Commission. |
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