Barmet of Kentucky, Inc. v. Sallee

605 S.W.2d 29, 1980 Ky. App. LEXIS 362
Court of Appeals of Kentucky·Decided March 14, 1980·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

BREETZ, Judge.

This is an appeal from a judgment which affirmed, with modification, an award of the Workmen’s Compensation Board to the appellee, as widow of James Ronald Sallee and as mother of their two children. The modification ordered by the lower court was necessary in order to correct two mathematical errors made by the board. The judgment of the circuit court ordered the board to modify the award by increasing it to $104.00 per week and, finding that there was sufficient evidence in the record to support the board’s finding that the employer was to be assessed the 15% increase, properly computed the penalty to be $15.60 per week.

The appellant contests the imposition of the penalty upon it and the refusal of both the board and the lower court to award a 15% reduction under KRS 342.165. We affirm the denial of the 15% reduction, but we reverse the imposition of the 15% penalty on the employer.

The decedent, James Ronald Sallee, was employed as a shift production supervisor at appellant’s Livia, Kentucky plant. He worked the midnight to eight o’clock shift, and on June 28,1977, a machine referred to as an “exploder” jammed. The testimony indicated that when this occurs, it usually results in a blown fuse. Fellow employees testified that the decedent remarked that he was going to inspect the problem. After a short period of time, Mr. Sallee’s body was found in front of an electrical cabinet in the production control room. This room contains the electrical control units for the operating equipment in the plant including the malfunctioning exploder. The body was found in front of the electrical cabinet which contained the fuses for the exploder. This cabinet door was found open. One fuse had been removed and another was partially removed. The floor of the control room was wet or moist. The board’s find[31] ing- that Mr. Sallee was electrocuted while changing a fuse is not challenged.

The appellee requested the board to assess the penalty against the appellant both for its alleged violation of KRS 338.-031(l)(a) which requires an employer to

... furnish to each of his employes employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employes

and for its alleged violation of 29 CFR § 1910.22(a)(2)1 which reads as follows:

(a) Housekeeping.
(2) The floor of every workroom shall be maintained in a clean, and so far as possible, a dry condition. Where wet processes are used, drainage shall be maintained, and false floors, platforms, mats, or other dry standing places should be provided where practicable, (emphasis added)

The appellee argued before the board that appellant violated KRS 338.031(l)(a) by its failure to provide its employees with fuse-pullers. The board rejected that argument on the ground that there is no regulation requiring the employer to furnish fuse-pullers and on the further ground that KRS 338.031(l)(a) is too vague to meet the requirement of KRS 342.165 that the statute alleged to have been violated be specific. There was no appeal from that ruling and, therefore, that issue is not before us.

The board, however, found appellant to be in violation of 29 CFR § 1910.22(a)(2) and assessed the penalty for that violation. The board’s findings on this issue were:

11. ... Next the defendant argues the failure of the plaintiff to show a willful intention to violate a specific safety standard. We find this argument is without merit. The defendant’s plant manager admitted awareness of the OSHA requirement of providing a clean and dry surface.
12. A careful review of the record supports a finding that the plaintiff is entitled to the 15% penalty under KRS 342.165. Our finding is based on the fact that the leaky condition of the roof was known to the defendant prior to the electrocution of Mr. Sallee, that the wet conditions in the electrical room were known to the defendant prior to Sallee’s death, that the employer was aware of the specific OSHA requirements and that the failure of the employer to comply contributed to the death of Mr. Sallee.

Appellant asks that we reconsider our holding in Childers v. International Harvester Co., Ky.App., 569 S.W.2d 675 (1977) and overrule it. We have reconsidered that decision and continue to adhere to its reasoning and holding that KRS 338.-021(2) does not prohibit the assessment of a penalty under the Workmen’s Compensation Act for a violation of a regulation promulgated under the Kentucky Occupational Safety and Health Act, KRS Ch. 338. This does not mean, however, that every violation by an employer of a regulation promulgated under statutory authority should result in an increase in the employer’s liability under the Workmen’s Compensation Act for KRS 342.165 requires an “intentional failure of the employer to comply with any specific statute or lawful regulation made thereunder”.

We know, through Gibbs Automatic Moulding Company v. Bullock, Ky., 438 S.W.2d 793 (1969), that either the employer must know that the regulation exists or the regulation must have been in existence long enough to create a presumption of knowledge before the employer may be assessed a penalty for its violation. Appellant concedes its knowledge of the regulation before the time Mr. Sallee was killed. It argues that, before it can be charged with an intentional failure under KRS 342.165, the board must find that it failed to attempt to comply with the regulation.

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Barmet of Kentucky, Inc. v. Sallee, 605 S.W.2d 29, 1980 Ky. App. LEXIS 362 (Ky. Ct. App. 1980).

605 S.W.2d 29 (Barmet of Kentucky, Inc. v. Sallee) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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