McSwain v. Industrial Commercial Sales & Service, LLC

On April 7, 2020, the North Carolina Court of Appeals issued an important decision that helped clarify the compensability of injuries suffered by traveling employees.

The Supreme Court of North Carolina has held that traveling employees (employees whose job requires them to stay overnight away from home) are generally considered to be acting “in the course of” their employment during their respective trip, except when there is a distinct departure on a personal errand is shown.  However, in order to prove compensability of injuries sustained while traveling for work, employees must still establish that the injury “arose out of” their employment.  In determining whether an injury “arose out of” employment depends on the facts, and may differ on a case-by-case basis.

Are Traveling Employees Injuries Covered?

In McSwain v. Industrial Commercial Sales & Service, LLC, Employee-Plaintiff, while traveling on business for work, was walking to the laundry room (in order to do laundry) located at the hotel in which he was staying during his trip.  While walking to the laundry room, Employee-Plaintiff slipped and fell resulting in extensive bodily injuries.  In making its ultimate decision, the Court was required to apply the above referenced law and determine whether Employee-Plaintiff’s accident and injuries were “within the course of” and “arose out of” his employment.  The Court first clarified that the mere fact that the accident occurred at the hotel Employee-Plaintiff was staying at overnight was not a dispositive factor in determining compensability of the accident and injuries.   Instead, the Court held that in order for Employee-Plaintiff to establish a causal relationship between his employment and the injuries sustained, he must prove that the act he was engaged in at the time of such injury was “necessary” to perform the job functions for the employer.
 
Based upon the Court’s jurisprudence, the Court in McSwain held that washing or doing laundry was not a “necessary” personal need that needed to be done for Employee-Plaintiff to complete his job functions for his employer.  In fact, the Court found that there was no evidence submitted by Employee-Plaintiff showing that doing laundry was necessary to further, directly or indirectly, the business of the employer.  There was also no evidence to support a finding that Employee-Plaintiff had run out of clothes to necessitate a need to do laundry to provide clean clothes for the remainder of such business trip.  Thus, the Court determined that the intent and act of doing laundry was not necessary to further, directly or indirectly, the business of the employer.  Given these findings, the Court determined that Employee-Plaintiff’s accident and injuries, despite occurring while traveling for his employer, did not “arise out of” his employment and therefore the claim is not compensable and benefits were denied.
 
Attorney Derek Wagner successfully defended this claim at the North Carolina Court of Appeals.  The decision by the Court helped clarify the legal nuances involved with accident and injuries occurring when an employee is traveling for business purposes.  If you have sustained injuries while traveling for work, please contact our office in order to seek proper legal advice with regard to your injuries.

FAQs

If I am injured while traveling overnight for work in North Carolina, is my injury automatically covered by workers’ compensation?
Not automatically. While North Carolina law generally considers traveling employees to be acting in the course of their employment during a business trip, you must also prove that your injury arose out of your employment. This means the activity you were engaged in at the time of injury must have been necessary to perform your job functions for your employer.
What does it mean for an injury to ‘arise out of’ employment for a traveling worker in North Carolina?
In North Carolina, an injury arises out of employment when there is a causal connection between the work duties and the injury sustained. For traveling employees, courts will examine whether the specific act being performed at the time of injury was necessary, directly or indirectly, to further the business of the employer.
If I slip and fall at a hotel while on a business trip in North Carolina, will my workers’ compensation claim be approved?
The location of the accident alone is not enough to guarantee your claim will be compensable. As established in McSwain v. Industrial Commercial Sales and Service, LLC, the North Carolina Court of Appeals clarified that merely being at a hotel during a business trip does not automatically make an injury compensable. The activity you were performing at the time of the injury must be shown to have been necessary to fulfill your job duties.
What types of activities while on a work trip in North Carolina might not be covered by workers’ compensation?
Activities that are considered personal errands or non-essential tasks unrelated to furthering the employer’s business may not be covered. For example, the North Carolina Court of Appeals found in McSwain that doing laundry at a hotel was not a necessary act to complete job functions and therefore did not qualify for workers’ compensation benefits.
What should I do if I am injured while traveling on business in North Carolina and I believe my injury is work-related?
You should consult with an experienced North Carolina workers’ compensation attorney as soon as possible, because compensability for traveling employee injuries is highly fact-specific. An attorney can evaluate whether your activity at the time of injury can be shown to have been necessary to further your employer’s business, which is a critical factor in determining whether your claim will be approved.