Preferred Payment Systems Corp, Employer
No. G0550499
New York Workers Compensation
January 6, 2020
Date
of Accident: 01/19/2012
District
Office: Albany
Carrier:
State Insurance Fund Carrier ID No.: W204002 Carrier Case
No.: 65428336-068
Claimant's Attorney: Zappone & Fiore
Panel:
Clarissa M. Rodriguez
MANDATORY
FULL BOARD REVIEW FULL BOARD MEMORANDUM OF DECISION
The
Full Board, at its meeting on December 17, 2019, considered
the above captioned case for Mandatory Full Board Review of
the Board Panel Memorandum of Decision filed June 13, 2019.
ISSUE
The
issue presented for Mandatory Full Board Review is whether
the claimant has established attachment to the labor market.
The
Workers' Compensation Law Judge (WCLJ) classified the
claimant with a permanent partial disability, found that the
claimant had a 65% loss of wage-earning capacity (LWEC),
found that the claimant was attached to the labor market, and
made awards.
The
Board Panel majority affirmed the WCLJ's finding that the
claimant was attached to the labor market, but modified
awards consistent with Burns v Varriale, 9 N.Y.3d
207 (2007).
The
dissenting Board Panel member would find that the claimant is
not attached to the labor market.
The
carrier filed an application for Mandatory Full Board Review
on July 2, 2019, arguing that the claimant submitted
insufficient evidence of labor market attachment.
The
claimant did not file a timely rebuttal.
Upon
review, the Full Board votes to adopt the following findings
and conclusions.
FACTS
This
claim is established for injuries to the neck, face, and both
hands stemming from a work-related accident on January 19,
2012. The claimant, a valet parking attendant, was injured in
a motor vehicle accident. The average weekly wage has been
set at $691.96.
In
correspondence dated August 21, 2013, the carrier consented
to the settlement of the claimant's third-party action in
the gross amount of $500,000.00, with net proceeds to the
claimant in the amount of $331,511.04. The carrier reserved
its right to exercise its credit pursuant to Burns
at a rate of 33.7% for any payments due in excess of
first-party benefits.
The
Board file contains correspondence dated August 31, 2017,
confirming the claimant's registration with One Stop. The
documentation indicates that the claimant attended an
orientation and initial assessment, and that the claimant was
referred for job search planning assistance, career guidance,
training for interviews, advanced resume writing, and
ACCES-VR.
In a
decision filed January 9, 2018, the WCLJ made awards from
December 4, 2017, to January 4, 2018, and continuing at the
temporary partial disability rate of $309.08 per week. The
WCLJ further noted that Burns...
