No. 03995195 (1999). EMPLOYEE: Christopher Gonsalves.

• Case Date: January 29, 1999
• Court: Massachusetts

Massachusetts Workers Compensation 1999. No. 03995195 (1999). EMPLOYEE: Christopher Gonsalves COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS EMPLOYEE: Christopher Gonsalves EMPLOYER: IGS Store Fixtures, Inc. INSURER: Liberty Mutual Ins. Co.BOARD NO. 03995195REVIEWING BOARD DECISION (Judges Levine, Carroll and Maze-Rothstein)APPEARANCES Scott D. Goldberg, Esq., for the Employee at hearing and on brief Donald L. Pitman, III, Esq., for the Employee on brief Gerard A. Pugsley, Esq., for the Insurer LEVINE, J. The employee appeals the decision of an administrative judge which denied his claim that the insurer violated G.L. c. 152, § 14(1), by its refusal to accept liability for the employee's claimed industrial injury. 1 After review and reconsideration, we decline to follow our previous interpretation of the phrase "reasonable grounds" as appearing in § 14(1), and we recommit the decision of the administrative judge for further findings consistent with this opinion. At the time of the hearing, the employee was a twenty-three year old single male who resided with his mother in Medford, Massachusetts. He completed high school and had attended several semesters of college, last attending North Shore Community College in 1994. His prior work experience consists of catering, masonry and roofing. (Dec. 1.) In January, 1995, Mr. Gonsalves commenced employment with IGS Store Fixtures as a general laborer. (Id.) This position involved heavy lifting, sometimes with the assistance of other employees or mechanical devices such as a forklift. On August 17, 1995, while in the course of his employment, the employee was carrying a desk unit weighing several hundred pounds. The unit began to slip and the employee, while attempting to prevent the slip, heard a snap in his body; he felt pain in his stomach and back and had difficulty breathing. The occurrence was witnessed by several co-workers. One co-worker drove the employee to the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, and the employee was then referred to the Massachusetts General Hospital. The employee was diagnosed with a hernia. That same day, the employee told his supervisor, Paul Woolbert, over the telephone that the injury was not related to work. Woolbert conveyed this information to the employer's accountant who handled insurance claims. (Dec. 7.) Several days later, the employee underwent a surgical procedure to repair the hernia. (Id.) As a result of complications, the employee underwent two subsequent procedures, one in December 1995 and the other in April 1996. The employee continued to experience tingling and burning sensations in his leg and pain...