State ex rel. 31, Inc. v. Indus. Comm. (Slip Opinion)

2017 Ohio 9112, 96 N.E.3d 246, 152 Ohio St. 3d 350
CourtOhio Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 21, 2017
Docket2016-0968
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 2017 Ohio 9112 (State ex rel. 31, Inc. v. Indus. Comm. (Slip Opinion)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. 31, Inc. v. Indus. Comm. (Slip Opinion), 2017 Ohio 9112, 96 N.E.3d 246, 152 Ohio St. 3d 350 (Ohio 2017).

Opinion

Per Curiam.

*247 *350 {¶ 1} This is an appeal in a mandamus case in which appellant, 31, Inc., challenges the order of appellee Industrial Commission granting an additional award for the violation of a specific safety requirement ("VSSR"). The commission determined that 31, Inc. had violated the "nip point" rule found in Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(a), thereby causing an industrial injury to appellee Duane Ashworth. 1

{¶ 2} The Tenth District Court of Appeals denied the request for a writ, concluding that the commission did not abuse its discretion.

{¶ 3} We hold that the nip-point rule did not apply here because an administrative-code provision applicable to the rubber and plastics industry expressly covered the machine that Ashworth was operating. Therefore, we reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and issue a writ of mandamus ordering the commission to issue a new order that denies Ashworth's application for a VSSR award.

Facts and Procedural History

{¶ 4} 31, Inc. processes rubber to make products that are used to repair tires. Ashworth was employed by 31, Inc. as a calender operator. A calender is defined as "a machine equipped with two or more metal rolls revolving in opposite directions and used for continuously sheeting or plying up rubber or plastic *351 compounds and for frictioning or coating fabric with rubber or plastic compounds." Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-13-01(B)(3).

{¶ 5} Ashworth operated a calender with three rolls. A coworker would insert a ball of rubber between the top and middle rolls on one side of the calender, and as it came out of the opposite side, Ashworth's job was to grab the rubber with both hands and peel it off the bottom roll into a tank containing a chemical solution to cool it.

{¶ 6} On the day of the accident, as Ashworth grabbed the rubber to pull it off the roll, it caught the fingers on his right hand and pulled his hand into a three-inch space between the rolls. When he was unable to remove his hand, he pulled an emergency cable that immediately stopped the rolls.

{¶ 7} Ashworth filed a workers' compensation claim that was allowed for multiple injuries to his hand. He also applied for an additional award for a VSSR, alleging that 31, Inc. had violated Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(a), a workshop-and factory-safety rule.

{¶ 8} Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10) provides:

Nip points.
(a) Means shall be provided to protect employees exposed to contact with nip points created by power driven in-running rolls, rollover platen, or other flat surface material being wound over roll surface.
(b) Exception.
*248 Machinery covered expressly by requirements contained in other codes of specific requirements of the Ohio bureau of workers' compensation.

{¶ 9} 31, Inc. argued that the exception in Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(b) applied because the calender was expressly covered by Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-13-03, a rule that provides specific safety guidelines for calenders used in the rubber and plastics industry. A staff hearing officer rejected this argument, finding that both Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-13-03 and 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(a) applied to the calender, citing State ex rel. Hartco, Inc., Custom Coated Prods. v. Indus. Comm. , 38 Ohio St.3d 181 , 527 N.E.2d 815 (1988), in which this court held that Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(a) applied to a reroll machine used in the rubber and plastics industry.

{¶ 10} The staff hearing officer nevertheless denied Ashworth's VSSR application, concluding that "the nip point guarding provisions were not practical on the calender machine" and that the machine was equipped with alternative means of protection, such as extra safety lines and emergency-stop cords as required for the rubber industry.

*352 {¶ 11} Ashworth moved for a rehearing. A staff hearing officer granted the motion.

{¶ 12} On rehearing, a staff hearing officer concluded that Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(a) applied, and the hearing officer granted the VSSR application. The hearing officer rejected 31, Inc.'s argument that the exception in Ohio Adm.Code 4123:1-5-11(D)(10)(b) applied, finding that the administrative rules for the rubber industry supplement-but do not supplant-the workshop and factory rules, citing Hartco .

{¶ 13} 31, Inc. filed a complaint for a writ of mandamus, alleging that both the decision to grant a rehearing and the decision to order a VSSR award were contrary to law and not supported by some evidence, see State ex rel. McKee v. Union Metal Corp. , 150 Ohio St.3d 223 , 2017-Ohio-5541 , 80 N.E.3d 491 , ¶ 11 (the commission abuses its discretion if it enters an order that is not supported by "some evidence").

{¶ 14} The court of appeals concluded that the commission did not abuse its discretion when granting the rehearing motion or the VSSR award. The court determined that Hartco , which interpreted the same Administrative Code provisions at issue here, held that the rules for the rubber and plastic industries supplement but do not supplant the rules for workshops and factories. The court of appeals denied the writ. 2016-Ohio-3526 , 2016 WL 3430692 , ¶ 7-8.

{¶ 15} The direct appeal filed by 31, Inc. is now before the court.

Legal Analysis

{¶ 16} At the outset, we deny 31, Inc.'s request for oral argument.

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Bluebook (online)
2017 Ohio 9112, 96 N.E.3d 246, 152 Ohio St. 3d 350, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-31-inc-v-indus-comm-slip-opinion-ohio-2017.