Court Opinion

ID: 9447934
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-03 23:18:01.457239+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:31:14.274883
License: Public Domain

FAHY, Circuit Judge
(concurring in part, dissenting in part).
I agree with the opinion of the court in rejecting appellant’s claim that he was entitled to reimbursement of certain medical expenses.
As to the amount of compensation awarded I do not agree. It appears that during the period of one year next preceding the injury appellant worked about 196 days during more than 43 weeks. The total possible days of employment for a five-day week were 261. Because of the nature of appellant’s employment, which was on outside construction jobs, somewhat less than fifty per cent of his working time consisted of five-day weeks, the balance consisting of three or four days, or two days, or even one day a week.
The decisive factor I think is that appellant worked throughout the year at employment which continued throughout the year; that is, the employment was not seasonal. The Deputy Commissioner found that the days not worked were when work was unavailable or could not be perfoxuned due to inclement weather. The Deputy Commissioner also found that the employment was “continuous.”
It seems to me that in the above circumstances the position supported by the weight of authority,1 albeit state court decisions under state statutes, is that appellant’s compensation should have been computed under section 10(a) of the Act2 on the basis that he was employed during “substantially the whole of the year immediately preceding his injury.” Since section 10(a) could reasonably and fairly be applied there was no occasion for the Deputy Commissioner to resort to section 10(c).
It is well settled that doubts such as might be thought to exist here should be resolved favorably to the employee. Robinson v. Bradshaw, 92 U.S.App.D.C. 216, 206 F.2d 435, certiorari denied 346 U.S. 899, 74 S.Ct. 226, 98 L.Ed. 400; Travelers Ins. Co. v. Donovan, 95 U.S. App.D.C. 331, 221 F.2d 886. Even without this rule of construction my view would be the same.

. E.g., Stines v. Farmers Lumber & Supply Co., Iowa 1960, 100 N.W.2d 415; Jarrell v. Travelers Ins. Co., 1951, 218 La. 531, 50 So.2d 22; Romig v. Champion Blower & Forge Co., 1934, 315 Pa. 97, 172 A. 293.

. Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, 44 Stat. 1424 (1927), 33 U.S.C. §§ 901-950 (1958), 33 U.S.O.A. §§ 901-950.