California Workers’ Compensation Statutes as Exclusive RemedyIn both their original and amended complaints, the Kuciembas argued that Mrs. Kuciemba has a separate and distinct claim that is not derivative of Mr. Kuciemba’s claim and is therefore not barred by California’s Workers’ Compensation Statutes. See Cal. Labor Code §§ 3600, 3602. The Kuciembas cited a case in which a California court found that an employee’s child had a distinct claim from the employee because she was exposed to toxic levels of carbon monoxide present at the worksite while still in utero.

First, the court ruled that Corby’s public nuisance claim failed for lack of standing. Next, the court ruled that Corby’s various negligence claims, as well as Robert’s loss of consortium claim, were all barred by California workers’ compensation provisions, which provide the sole and exclusive remedy for the employee and the employee’s dependents. See Cal. Labor Code §§ 3600, 3602.The court’s ruling is gratifying for management-side defense attorneys who have been arguing that states’ workers compensation laws preempt most allegations of COVID-19-related injuries or damages resulting from exposure to the virus in the workplace. The combination of worker’s compensation protections (which here extended to the spouse) and the myriad of states that have passed various forms of immunity for COVID claims – including, but not limited to, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, and South Carolina – provide employers with their own form of vaccine to the onslaught of litigation created by COVID-19.Many COVID-19 employment lawsuits raise novel legal issues, so it is important for employers to monitor COVID-19 employment litigation trends.

Such uncertain liability includes potential workers’ compensation claims (and possibly civil claims) for a mandated COVID-19 vaccine injury or adverse reaction.The California’s Workers’ Compensation Act (WCA), Cal. Lab. Code 3600, et seq., addresses “conditions of compensability” if an injury is “work-related.” It is an open question, since there is no precedent, what courts and the WCAB will consider in deciding whether a mandated COVID-19 vaccine injury is work-related; however, older California cases addressing employer liability related to vaccinations focus on whether the vaccination was “at the direction of the employer” and “for the employer’s benefit.”

Injuries that occur at work may not be compensable if they are a result of intoxication, self-infliction, physical altercation, commission of a felony, or voluntary participation in off-duty recreational activity, among other things. See Cal. Labor Code Section 3600 (a).Liability ExposureIn determining liability exposure, given that COVID-19 will likely be considered a non-occupational disease, employers should consider whether their employees who contracted COVID-19 were subjected to an increased risk of developing the illness at work, or whether the employment aggravated the condition. Although there is a risk that an employee who is required to work from home contracts COVID-19 and files for workers’ compensation, it would appear that healthcare workers, first responders, and those who routinely interact with the public as part of their job would have a better chance of meeting this burden.

Injuries that occur at work may not be compensable if they are a result of intoxication, self-infliction, physical altercation, commission of a felony, or voluntary participation in off-duty recreational activity, among other things. See Cal. Labor Code Section 3600 (a).Liability ExposureIn determining liability exposure, given that COVID-19 will likely be considered a non-occupational disease, employers should consider whether their employees who contracted COVID-19 were subjected to an increased risk of developing the illness at work, or whether the employment aggravated the condition. Although there is a risk that an employee who is required to work from home contracts COVID-19 and files for workers’ compensation, it would appear that healthcare workers, first responders, and those who routinely interact with the public as part of their job would have a better chance of meeting this burden.

Here’s their argument: “Current law: Excludes from workers’ compensation liability injuries caused by “alcohol or the unlawful use of a controlled substance.” Cal. Labor Code § 3600. Marijuana is a controlled substance.