A ruling by the Texas Supreme Court should have an impact on temporary workers who are injured on the job and seek workers' compensation benefits. However, the ruling could have a negative financial impact on the family of a man who was killed in a grain elevator accident and later won a $2.7 million judgment against the company.
The victim worked for Staff Force Inc., a temporary staffing agency. In 2005, Staff Force assigned him to a temporary position with Port Elevator-Brownsville LLC in 2005. On his third day working there, there was an accident and he was fatally injured.
Port Elevator's workers' compensation insurer, Texas Mutual Insurance Co., refused the application for benefits filed by the victim's family following his death. They justified the decision by saying that, as a temporary worker, he was not covered by Port Elevator's workers' compensation policy.
Denied benefits, the family decided to file a personal injury lawsuit against Port Elevator, accusing the company of negligently allowing the man to be killed. The jury in the civil trial found in the plaintiffs' favor and awarded them $2.7 million in damages. Port Elevator appealed, arguing that under Texas law, workers' compensation was the family's sole route to recover damages.
The case reached the state supreme court. In a unanimous decision, the court reversed the trial court decision. The court agreed with the defendant's contention about the exclusive remedy provision, but held that the company should either have provided separate workers' compensation insurance for temporary employees or covered them under its existing policy.
Source: Business Insurance, "Workers comp covers temporary worker: Texas Supreme Court," Sheena Harrison, Feb. 5, 2012
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