No. 01582693 (2000). EMPLOYEE: John C. Opoka.

• Case Date: February 08, 2000
• Court: Massachusetts

Massachusetts Workers Compensation 2000. No. 01582693 (2000). EMPLOYEE: John C. Opoka COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS EMPLOYEE: John C. Opoka EMPLOYER: Rock Valley Tool, Inc. INSURER: Cigna Insurance CompanyBOARD NO. 01582693REVIEWING BOARD DECISION (Judges McCarthy, Wilson and Smith)APPEARANCES Steven D. Rose, Esq., for the employee Jennifer A. Hylemon, Esq., for the insurer at hearing William R. Maher, Esq., for the insurer on brief MCCARTHY, J. John C. Opoka, now forty-one years of age, is single and a resident of Belchertown, Massachusetts. He dropped out of high school after finishing the eleventh grade and embarked on a series of labor intensive positions including work in a warehouse, landscaping and work as a machinist. (Tr. 9.) On April 19, 1993, while working for Rock Valley Tool Inc., Mr. Opoka injured his back while lifting a tree in the course of his employment. Back surgery was followed by various forms of therapy (Dec. 2.) This injury imposed physical restrictions upon Mr. Opoka. He could not lift more than twenty pounds nor could he lift from a bent position. He was also required to change positions frequently. Id. The insurer accepted the claim and paid weekly incapacity benefits for a closed period. Thereafter, the employee filed a claim for further benefits. This claim came on for conference and on March 5, 1997, the judge directed payment of § 35 benefits at the weekly rate of $55.76 based on an agreed average weekly wage of $432.94 and an earning capacity of $340.00 per week. This order was retroactive to October 21, 1996. Mr. Opoka appealed the conference order and the case went back to the same judge for a full evidentiary hearing. The single issue before the judge at the hearing was extent and duration of incapacity. Among the pertinent subsidiary findings of fact are these. Following his injury the employee obtained his G.E.D. Thereafter, he enrolled in a one-year program in computer and electronic technology at Porter and Chester Institute. (Dec. 2.) The judge observed that "Mr. Opoka has done an admirable job of retraining himself." (Dec. 2.) Following his graduation in April 1996, the employee conducted a job search which included sending out almost three hundred resumes. He received no job offers in the computer field. Although there is no finding on the...