Worker's Compensation Claim of Gonzales v. Grass Valley Mobile Home Park

933 P.2d 484, 1997 Wyo. LEXIS 40, 1997 WL 82360
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 28, 1997
Docket95-236
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 933 P.2d 484 (Worker's Compensation Claim of Gonzales v. Grass Valley Mobile Home Park) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Worker's Compensation Claim of Gonzales v. Grass Valley Mobile Home Park, 933 P.2d 484, 1997 Wyo. LEXIS 40, 1997 WL 82360 (Wyo. 1997).

Opinion

KAUTZ, District Judge.

Appellant applied for worker’s compensation benefits. The Office of Administrative Hearings ruled that appellant’s employment was not covered by worker’s compensation, and denied benefits. Appellant sought review in the district court which certified the case to this court. We find the administrative hearing examiner’s decision supported by substantial evidence and in accordance with law, and affirm.

I. ISSUES

Appellant, Samuel Gonzales (Gonzales), presents these issues:

A. Was Employee/Claimant involved in an extrahazardous employment covered under the Workers’ Compensation Act at the time he suffered an on the job injury?
B. Is the denial of worker’s compensation benefits to the appellant a violation of his rights to equal protection and substantive due process?

II. FACTS

The parties stipulated to the facts as follows. Grass Valley Mobile Home Park and Meadow Vista Mobile Home Park (Mobile Home Parks) located in the Evanston, Wyoming area rented lots to individuals who placed their own mobile homes on lots and rented to individuals several mobile homes owned by the Mobile Home Parks and situated on their lots. In either case, the Mobile Home Parks did not rent to transient tenants.

The Mobile Home Parks hired helpers to perform maintenance of the common areas of the Mobile Home Parks, including spraying weeds, mowing lawns, repairing fences, and hauling garbage. The helpers also per *486 formed work on the Mobile Home Parks to make the lots suitable for mobile home placement and hookup. In addition, the helpers performed basic cleaning, repair and remodeling work in the Mobile Home Parks’ rentals consisting of hooking up plumbing, removing and replacing vinyl and carpeting, putting up paneling, thawing frozen pipes, and repairing any other problems that arose in the rental units. When mobile homes were moved onto or off the lots, the helpers performed the set-up work, including using hydraulic jacks to set the mobile home on concrete blocks, removing the axles, insulating and skirting the mobile home.

Gonzales was employed as a helper by Grass Valley Mobile Home Park (Grass Valley). His primary responsibilities were the maintenance of the common areas, repair and remodeling of the mobile home rentals, and assistance in the set up of mobile homes as they were moved onto the lots. On October 31, 1994, Gonzales was assigned to skirt a mobile home that had recently been moved onto a lot in Grass Valley. He suffered injury when he fell backwards over an axle which had previously been removed from the mobile home by another employee.

III. STANDARD OF REVIEW

This appeal challenges the conclusions of law reached by the administrative hearing examiner. “Conclusions of law of an administrative agency are affirmed if they are found to be in accordance with law.” Matter of Corman, 909 P.2d 966, 970 (Wyo. 1996). “When we review an agency’s conclusions of law, we correct its errors ‘if the “correct rule of law has not been invoked and correctly applied.” ’ ” Matter of Gneiting, 897 P.2d 1306, 1308 (Wyo.1995) (quoting Thunder Basin Coal Co. v. Study, 866 P.2d 1288, 1291 (Wyo.1994)).

Gonzales also raises a constitutional (equal protection/due process) issue which was not decided by the administrative hearing examiner. The Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act directs the reviewing court “[t]o the extent necessary to make a decision and when presented, the * * * court shall * * * interpret constitutional and statutory provisions * * *.” Wyo. Stat. § 16-3-114(c) (1990).

IV. DISCUSSION

A. EXTRAHAZARDOUS EMPLOYMENT

The Wyoming Constitution requires worker’s compensation coverage for employees who work in “extrahazardous employment.” Wyo. Const, art. 10, § 4. To apply this provision, “the legislature is given the authority to decide what employment shall be covered.” Baskin v. State ex rel. Worker’s Compensation Div., 722 P.2d 151, 157 (Wyo.1986).

The legislature specifically defined extra-hazardous employment in Wyo. Stat. § 27-14^108 (Cum.Supp.1994). That statute lists classifications of industries where all employees are considered working in extrahazardous employment, regardless of their individual occupations, in subsection (a). It lists specific individual occupations or activities which are considered extrahazardous in subsection (e).

Wyo. Stat.. § 27-14H08(h) lists industries which are excluded from worker’s compensation coverage. In other words, the legislature has determined that certain industries do not constitute extrahazardous employment. Wyo. Stat. § 27-14-108(h)(v)(F) states:

(h) Notwithstanding subsection (c) of this section, the following industries are excluded from coverage under this act, unless an election of coverage is made * * *: ⅜ ⅜ ⅜ ⅜ ⅜ ⅜
(v) * * *
(F) Major group 65, real estate[.]

“Major group 65, real estate” is defined by the Standard Industrial Classification Manual to include “[ejstablishments primarily engaged in the operation of residential mobile home sites.”

The administrative hearing examiner found that Grass Valley was primarily engaged in the operation of residential mobile home sites. Gonzales does not challenge this finding. Rather, Gonzales argues that Grass Valley had other “phases” of its business *487 which were not excluded from the statutory definition of extrahazardous employment.

Gonzales asserts that his duties made him a janitor, grounds keeper, maintenance worker, construction worker, and building services worker, in addition to leasing or operating mobile home sites. Each of these occupations may be seen as extrahazardous employment under Wyo. Stat. § 27-14-108(d). Gonzales claims, then, that these “phases” of his work were extrahazardous under Wyo. Stat. § 27-14-108(d) even though his employer’s business was excluded from mandatory worker’s compensation under Wyo. Stat. § 27-14-108(h)(v)(F).

As a general rule, “if the employer does not engage in extrahazardous activities, then whether the individual employee’s activities are hazardous in nature is not material * * Baskin, 722 P.2d at 154 (citing Randell v. Wyoming State Treasurer ex rel. Wyoming Worker’s Compensation Div., 671 P.2d 303 (Wyo.1983) and 1C Larsen, Law of Workmen’s Compensation, § 55.41 at 9-235 (1982)).

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933 P.2d 484, 1997 Wyo. LEXIS 40, 1997 WL 82360, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/workers-compensation-claim-of-gonzales-v-grass-valley-mobile-home-park-wyo-1997.