Court Opinion

ID: 9604745
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 02:26:11.082419+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:05:42.152544
License: Public Domain

STOWERS, Justice, dissenting. I dissent. The majority argues that the district court was justified in aggregating petitioner Maria Justiz’s (Justiz) wages from her two separate but concurrent employments pursuant to NMSA 1978, Subsection 52-1-20(C). However, by the clear and unambiguous language of this statute, Subsection C is only appropriate when the average weekly wage cannot be fairly computed by the methods of computation provided for in Subsection B. No evidence was introduced in this case to prove that Justiz’s average weekly wage could not be fairly computed according to Subsection B. The majority’s reliance on Subsection C is therefore misplaced. In its findings of fact and conclusions of law, the district court stated: Combining the compensation rate for the two jobs (up to the maximum) was done because of § 52-1-25 N.M.S.A. 1978. Disability is decided by all of the work which a person is fitted.- If disability can be denied because a workman can do other work than what he was doing at the time of the accident, then it seems only fair that all the work he was doing should be considered for determining the amount of compensation. [Emphasis added.] What the district court considered “fair” under the circumstances should not be confused with the statutory term “fairly computed.” As interpreted by this Court earlier in the case of Kendrick v. Gackle Drilling Co., 71 N.M. 113, 376 P.2d 176 (1962), Subsection C (virtually identical to the former subsection at issue in the Kendrick case) is to be used in circumstances where, because of some practical difficulty such as the employee working only four days at the job, the actual mathematical computation of the employee’s average weekly wages cannot be fairly computed by Subsection B of the same statute. Subsection C itself provides several examples of the type of situation wherein the “methods of computing the average weekly wage of the employee” cannot be fairly computed. Such examples include “the nature of the employment or the fact that the injured employee has not worked a sufficient length of time to enable his earnings to be fairly computed thereunder, or has been ill or in business for himself.” The present case simply does not fall within the category of cases described in Subsection C. Moreover, New Mexico has already addressed the issue of workmen’s compensation liability in dual employment situations. The case of Clemmer v. Carpenter, 98 N.M. 302, 648 P.2d 341 (Ct.App.), cert. denied, 98 N.M. 336, 648 P.2d 794 (1982), described dual employment as follows: Dual employment occurs when a single employee, under contract with two employers, and under the separate control of each, performs services for the most part for each employer separately, and when the service for each employer is largely unrelated to that for the other. In such a case, the employers may be liable for workmen’s compensation separately or jointly, depending on the sever-ability of the employee’s activity at the time of injury. Id. at 308, 648 P.2d at 347 (quoting 1C A. Larson, The Law of Workmen’s Compensation § 48.40 (1980)). Next, the court went on to very clearly specify how liability for workmen’s compensation was to be determined. It stated: In dual-employment situation, if the accident occurs when the work[er] is clearly performing services for only one employer, then that employer is liable for any workmen’s compensation benefits. If, however, the services being performed at the time of the accident cannot be attributed to a specific employer, but are services performed for both employers, then both employers are liable. Id. at 309, 648 P.2d at 348 (emphasis added). While the court of appeals’ dissent, in which the majority relies in this case, summarily dismissed the Clemmer case as being inapplicable in that the Clemmer case dealt with the doctrine of dual employment while the present case is one of concurrent employment, I find this a distinction without substance. Justiz’s employment situation fits squarely within the Clemmer definition of dual employment. Consequently, since the accident occurred while Justiz was clearly performing services for only one employer, Walgreen’s, then only Walgreen’s should be liable for any workmen’s compensation benefits. See Clemmer. The use of the term “fairly computed” in the statute is presumed to carry its ordinary meaning. See State v. Lujan, 103 N.M. 667, 670, 712 P.2d 13, 16 (Ct.App.1985), cert. denied, 103 N.M. 740, 713 P.2d 556 (1986) (citations omitted). Accordingly, I think the district court erred in aggregating Justiz’s wages as there was nothing to prevent their fair computation pursuant to Subsection B as provided by the Legislature. I believe the court of appeals’ majority opinion correctly disposed of the issues in this case. I therefore dissent.