Roach v. Kelsey Wheel Co.

167 N.W. 33, 200 Mich. 299, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 835
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 27, 1918
DocketDocket No. 152
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 167 N.W. 33 (Roach v. Kelsey Wheel Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Roach v. Kelsey Wheel Co., 167 N.W. 33, 200 Mich. 299, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 835 (Mich. 1918).

Opinions

Fellows, J.

(dissenting). Plaintiff is the widow of George Roach, a workman; defendant Kelsey Wheel Company an employer of labor operating under the workmen’s compensation law at the time of the transaction ; the Aetna Life Insurance Company its insurer. In the conduct of its business the Kelsey Wheel Company, hereafter called the defendant, deemed it necessary to tear out and rebuild the brick work around one of the boilers in its plant. Whenever it was necessary to do such work it was its custom to employ one Nicholas Jackman, a mason by trade, who would procure such additional help for it as might be desired. Jackman and the helpers were each paid the union wage by defendant, punched the clock as other employees did, and continued in the employ of defendant until the work in hand was completed. Jackman, Roach and others commenced this work July 24, 1916. The weather was extremely warm. The first thing done was to tear out the old brickwork, and carry away and dump the old brick and mortar outside. The wreckage was piled on trucks which were quite heavy, and these trucks when loaded were pushed outside the building by the workmen and unloaded. The brick work around the boiler was still warm when the work was undertaken and the adjoining boiler was in operation under a head of steam stated to be 125 pounds. The partition walls were heated and it is said [301]*301that the place where the wrecking was' being done had a temperature of around 136 degrees. The laborers could not remain under such heat for any considerable time. On the first day of the employment decedent was prostrated by the heat and went home. He did not work the next day, but did the following day until shortly before quitting time, when we infer, although the record is not clear, he had another attack which was slight. The following afternoon he again collapsed, was taken to his home and died that evening. A fellow employee who was with him when he fell testified:

“I was with him on the last day that he worked there, when he fell. He was standing up and we were just going to give the thing another shove, this truck, and he fell over on the side of his face. We picked him up and he was bleeding. He fell against the only thing there, concrete. The fall made his face bleed. He fell right up against the concrete. It is all concrete there where we were working at the time. Hit his head against the concrete. He became unconscious right then. After he fell over he never said anything more. We were inside of Kelsey’s yet. We 'were taking a rest. It was pretty heavy. We were inside of the building. We would shove it out a little, then take another rest. Then we gave another push and he fell. He had been working under the boilers there.”

On October 16, 1916, plaintiff having filed a claim for compensation, defendant denied liability in the following language:

“As it appeared from our investigation that Mr. Roach’s death was due to being overcome by the excessive heat of the season we did not regard same as arising out of the employment and therefore no report was made for your office and for the same reason we will have to decline entering into an agreement to pay compensation under the Michigan workmen’s compensation act.”

Arbitrators were appointed and at the opening of [302]*302the hearing by the board of arbitration the following occurred:

“Chairman Reaves: I will ask you to stipulate, Mr. Kennedy, what you can in this case.
“Mr. Kennedy: (defendant’s attorney) As far as we are concerned we can admit that his wages were forty cents an hour, working eight hours a day.
“Mr. Reaves: You admit he was employed by the Kelsey Wheel Company?
“Mr. Kennedy: Yes.
“Chairman Reaves: As a laborer?
“Mr. Kennedy: Yes.
“Chairman Reaves: Repairing boilers?
“Mr. Kennedy: Yes.
“Chairman Reaves: For the Kelsey Wheel Company. He was employed there on July 27th?
“Mr. Kennedy: That is correct.”

The board of arbitration awarded plaintiff $9.80 per week for 300 weeks, which award was affirmed by the industrial accident board. The accident board filed a full and complete finding which it will not be necessary for us to here detail. From this finding we gather that the board concluded that the deceased met his death as the result of a heat stroke induced by the superheated condition of the place of employment, coupled with the strain incident to moving the loaded truck. To review this proceeding we allowed this writ of certiorari. Defendant here insists that the award should be reversed:

“* * * Because the board erred in finding:
“1. That George Roach was an employee of the Kelsey Wheel Company within the scope of the compensation act; because
“(a) His employment was casual only.
“(b) His employment was not in the usual course of the trade, business, profession or occupation of his employer.
“(e) He was an employee of an independent contractor.
“2. That death resulted from an accidental injury [303]*303sustained by Roach, arising out of and in the course of his employment.”

We are met at the threshold of this case with a question of procedure which must be first considered, as it determines the scope of our inquiry. The plaintiff insists that the questions presented under the first head are not here available; that defendant in its statement denying liability relied solely upon the defense that deceased met his death by reason of excessive heat, which defendant then claimed, and now claims, was not an accident arising out of his employment; that the case was submitted to the board of arbitration upon that theory, and that by reason of this fact, and the admissions of the defendant, the defenses here sought to be interposed under the first head are not open, leaving the sole question for our consideration whether the death of deceased was, within the meaning of the act, due to an accident arising out of his employment.

By section 3, part 3, Act No. 10, Extra Session 1912 (2 Comp. Laws 1915, § 5456), the act creating the industrial accident board and prescribing its powers and duties, it is provided:

“The board may make rules not inconsistent with this act for carrying out the provisions of the act.”

Pursuant to this provision the board has adopted a set of rules of procedure governing proceedings before the board, Rule V of which reads as follows:

“If the employer denies liability in”case where a claim for compensation is filed by an injured employee or his dependents, such denial shall be filed with the board in writing by such employer and shall set forth with reasonable detail and certainty the facts and circumstances upon which he relies as a defense to such claim.

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Bluebook (online)
167 N.W. 33, 200 Mich. 299, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 835, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/roach-v-kelsey-wheel-co-mich-1918.