Linda Mantia v Mo Dept of Transportation
Inj. No. 08-096313 2024 MO WCLR LEXIS 21
D/A May 30, 2008
ALJ Carlisle
Atty: Swaney
Experts: Jovick, Stillings
The Commission reverses the ALJ finding that claimant failed to prove "extraordinary " stress compared to a "reasonable" highway worker, and awards 50% BAW ( $77,000 in benefits) for depression with open medical after a series of multiple appeals since the 2015 award.
The claimant introduced additonal evidence on a remand hearing and the commisison concluded claimant had more exposures (quantity, approx. 1000 accidents) over a 29 year career and uniquely stessful exposures to 'carnage, death and tragedy' (quality), as comporable employees rarely encountered fatalities. The Commisison noted the correct analytic focus was not whether the profession was stressful but whether the actual events experienced by the claimant were of such a nature to cause extraordnary stress within a reasonable person within the profession.
An appeal was subsequently filed with the Court of Appeals on July 1 (ED 112845).
