Workers’ Compensation 9 : Special Employee

Q: The temporary agency assigned me to work in a client’s kitchen, and I reported for work.  The client handed me a food service uniform and directed me to my kitchen work station.  On my second day, upon the kitchen floor, there was a wet, greasy substance.  I slipped.

Who is my employer for the purposes of Worker’s Compensation?

A: Quite possibly, the client would prefer to be considered your employer in order to confine you to Worker’s Compensation and thus wriggle out of an ordinary negligence action.  The client will claim that it was your ‘special employer’.

However, nothing you say permits the inference that the client assumed control over the manner, details and ultimate result of your work.  Assuming that you are experienced, the client probably sought your services precisely because it did not wish to have to supervise the manner, details and ultimate result.

Being told what job to do does not suffice to demonstrate the existence of a ‘special employment’ relation: independent contractors and their employees are routinely instructed as to what they should do by those purchasing their services, but do not therefore become the purchasers’ employees.

By: Scott Baron,
Attorney at Law Advertorial

The law responds to changed conditions; exceptions and variations abound. Here, the information is general; always seek out competent counsel. This article shall not be construed as legal advice.

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