Background
Kevin Brady filed a claim for disability compensation under the Longshoremen and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act after sustaining an injury while working for Texas Terminals, LP. An Administrative Law Judge initially denied partial disability benefits, but the Benefits Review Board vacated that decision to require a proper analysis of Brady’s average weekly wage and wage-earning capacity. After a remand, the Benefits Review Board affirmed the denial of benefits, concluding that Brady suffered no loss in wage-earning capacity.
The court’s reasoning
The court held that its review was limited to determining whether the Benefits Review Board’s decision was supported by substantial evidence. The court found that the Administrative Law Judge and the Benefits Review Board correctly applied Section nine hundred ten subsection c of the Longshoremen and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. This section governs scenarios where a worker’s weekly pay cannot reasonably and fairly be generalized due to factors such as periods of unemployment, inconsistent employment history, and lack of credible evidence regarding prior earnings. The court concluded that the calculation of an average weekly wage of four hundred two dollars and nineteen cents was supported by the record and that there was no evidence supporting the claimant’s asserted figure of one thousand dollars.
What it means going forward
The denial of the petition for review finalizes the Benefits Review Board’s order, confirming that the claimant is not entitled to compensation for permanent partial disability based on the calculated average weekly wage.