I. INTRODUCTION

1. What does the Act cover?

   The Act gives an injured worker and his dependents a no-fault remedy against his employer to receive certain compensation benefits for accidental injuries arising out of and in the course of employment. Art. 101, Section 15 of the Annotated Code of Maryland. In exchange for this strict liability, an employer is given certain protection, in that the Act provides that the employer's liability is limited to the payment of compensation and medical and funeral expenses set forth in schedules and further that the worker and his dependents may not maintain a tort action against the employer for damages since the workers' compensation remedy is exclusive.

2. Can one be fired for filing a claim?

   No! An employer may not discharge an employee solely because he filed a claim for workers' compensation. He is not, however, liable for wrongful discharge if the termination is based on one's inability to perform the work or excessive absenteeism resulting from the injury.

II. JURISDICTION

Injuries occurring in Maryland

The Act applies to all accidents in Maryland except:

1. Those occurring on navigable waters and certain adjacent areas, which would be covered by the federal Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act.
2. Injuries Occurring Outside Maryland

The Act does apply to injuries occurring outside the state if:

1. The employment outside Maryland is only casual, occasional or incidental, and
2. The employer is a resident of Maryland and the employee is regularly employed in Maryland.

III. THE EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP

1. What determines whether or not one is an "employee"?

   The Maryland Court of Appeals has developed the following list of factors to be applied in determining the existence of an employer-employee relationship:

1. The selection and engagement of the employee;
2. The payment of wages;
3. The power of dismissal;
4. The power of control over the employee's conduct;
5. Whether the work is part of the regular business of the employer;
6. Whether the parties believed they were creating the relationship of master and servant;
7. Whether the work is usually done, in the environment, under the direction of the employer or by a specialist, without supervision;
8. The skill required in the occupation. These criteria are often applied in cases where a worker works for more than one person as a result of being borrowed or hired from one to the other.
   

2. What about an independent contractor?

An independent contractor is not an employee and has been defined as: "One who contracts to perform a certain work for another according to his own means and methods, free from the control of his employer in all details connected with the performance of the work, except as to its product or result". Thus, the result in a given case will depend upon the degree of supervision exercised over the worker.

3. Is all employment covered?

Once an employer-employee relationship is established, the parties will be subject to the Workers' Compensation Act unless they are considered casual employmees, which has by far given rise to the most litigation. This is defined generally as employment that is irregular, unpredictable, sporadic and brief in nature.

IV. INJURIES COVERED BY THE ACT

1. What injuries are covered?

The Act covers disability or death "resulting from an accidental personal injury sustained by the employee arising out of and in the course of his employment.

2. Define "accidental".

The Maryland courts have adopted a very strict interpretation of the word "accidental." They have consistently held that the sudden and unexpected rupture of some portion of the internal structure of the body, or the failure of some essential function of the body, is an "accidental injury" only when it results from some unusual strain or exertion of the employee or some unusual condition in the employment. In other words, if an accidental injury is to be found, there must have occurred not merely an unexpected result but an accidental cause. In determining whether a particular task is a normal incident of the employee's work, two factors to be considered are (1) the nature of the particular task in comparison to the other duties required of the employee, and (2) the relative frequency with which the particular task is required to be performed in comparison to other incidents of the job.

3. Can you give some examples of "accidental" injuries?

Heart attack sustained by truck driver when a heavy drum he was loading tilted over on him and required unusual execution to upright it. Worker injured his back when he tried to do a job by himself without the usual assistance of another worker. Back injury sustained by a worker when a sudden gust of wind blew a door back on him and he threw up his arm to keep it from hitting him in the face.

4. What does "in the course of employment" mean?

It is generally held that an injury arises "in the course of employment" when it occurs within the period of employment at a place where the employee reasonably may be in the performance of his duties and while he is fulfilling those duties or engaged in doing something incident thereto. An injury "arises out of" employment when, it is apparent to the rational mind that there was a causal connection between the conditions under which the work is required to be performed and the ensuing injury.

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