Jewell Ridge Coal Corp. v. Vance
| Decision Date | 11 June 1962 |
| Docket Number | No. 5459,5459 |
| Court | Virginia Supreme Court |
| Parties | JEWELL RIDGE COAL CORPORATION v. PAUL VANCE. Record |
Carl C. Gillespie (Gillespie & Gillespie, on brief), for the appellant.
Clyde Y. Cridlin (Montie S. Meeks, on brief), for the appellee.
On January 23, 1961, Paul Vance, sometimes hereinafter referred to as the claimant, filed with the Industrial Commission of Virginia a claim for compensation for disability because of silicosis contracted while he was employed by Jewell Ridge Coal Corporation. Jewell Ridge defended the claim on the ground that the claimant had waived his right to compensation benefits on account of silicosis, or any aggravation thereof, by signing a written waiver which had been approved by the Industrial Commission pursuant to Code, § 65-50.
After hearing the evidence the hearing commissioner, in a written opinion, held that the waiver was not a valid bar to the claim because, he said, 'the conditions prescribed in Section 65-50 of the Act for the execution of a waiver did not exist at the time the waiver was executed.' An award of compensation was entered. On review the majority of the Commission affirmed the award, with Commissioner Nuckols dissenting. We granted the employer a writ of error. The determinative question is whether, under the facts and circumstances to be related, the waiver executed by the claimant and approved by the Industrial Commission was valid and barred the claim for compensation.
On November 23, 1954, Vance applied to Jewell Ridge for re-employment in its coal mines. He had been previously employed by that concern from 1931 to April, 1954, during which period he had been exposed to silica dust while operating a coal cutting machine and a mine motor. Upon seeking re-employment Vance, as well as others, was required to submit to a physical examination by the company physician, Dr. P. E. Ferretti. On the same day the physician reported to the employer that an x-ray of Vance's chest disclosed 'Diffuse Fibrosis,' and that the applicant 'Must sign a waiver.' Vance then signed this waiver:
'WAIVER OF OCCUPATIONAL DISEASE COVERAGE UNDER SEC. 2-N.
'Pursuant to the provisions of Sec. 2-N, the undersigned hereby waives the right to claim compensation benefits covering the following physical conditions:
'Silicosis, or any aggravation thereof.
'This 23rd day of November, 1954.
his
'Paul X Vance mark
'Employee
'Witness:
'M. P. Gilmore
'Jewell Ridge Coal Corporation
'Employer
'M. P. Gilmore
'Personnel Manager'
The waiver carried the notation that it was 'Approved by the Industrial Commission on November 30, 1954.'
At the hearing Vance, who could neither read nor write, denied that he had executed the waiver. While Gilmore, the personnel manager who had witnessed Vance's signature, had died prior to the hearing, Billy D. French, who was then employed in the personnel office of the company, testified that he had prepared the waiver and the other papers incident to Vance's re-employment. He testified that he heard Gilmore explain the physician's report to Vance and tell him that according to that report 'his chest didn't meet the physical standards' and that 'he would have to waive his right to claim compensation for silicosis or any aggravation of it.' French further testified that after Vance had deliberated about the matter for more than thirty minutes he signed the waiver and his signature was witnessed by Gilmore.
While Vance contradicted in part the testimony of French, the Commission found as a fact that he executed the waiver under the circumstances related by French, and it is conceded on this appeal that this finding is binding on the claimant. The majority opinion of the full Commission also noted that the waiver had been approved by the Industrial Commission on November 30, 1954.
According to Jewell Ridge's records, Vance worked for that company for one day following his re-employment. He was employed elsewhere until May 16, 1955, when he returned to work for Jewell Ridge and continued this latter employment until August, 1959. On December 6, 1960, a physical examination showed that he was suffering from second-stage silicosis.
Code, § 65-50, provides: 'When an employee or prospective employee, though not incapacitated for work, is found to be affected by, or susceptible to, a specific occupational disease he may, subject to the approval of the Industrial Commission, be permitted to waive in writing compensation for any aggravation of his condition that may result from his...
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UNITED MINE WORKERS OF AMER. v. INDUSTRIAL COM'N OF VA.
...99 L.Ed. 563 (1955). The purpose of the waiver statute, as articulated by the Supreme Court of Virginia in Jewell Ridge Coal Corp. v. Vance, 203 Va. 557, 125 S.E.2d 879 (1962), is to provide for conditional employment of workers found susceptible to occupational diseases while at the same t......
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Uninsured Employer's Fund v. Mounts
...instance. The commission accepted Mounts' testimony that she did not explain the forms to him. See id. Citing Jewell Ridge Coal Corp. v. Vance, 203 Va. 557, 125 S.E.2d 879 (1962), the Fund contends that, as a matter of law, Mounts' illiteracy "has no impact on the effectiveness of the commu......
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Gagnon v. United Aircraft Corp., Hamilton Standard Division
...prevent them from securing a job. Modern Upholstered Chair Co. v. Henry, 213 Tenn. 475, 376 S.W.2d 441; Jewell Ridge Coal Corporation v. Vance, 203 Va. 557, 125 S.E.2d 879. Because any attempted waiver of benefits under the compensation act must be carefully scrutinized, our statute require......
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Modern Upholstered Chair Co. v. Henry
...Compensation Acts authorizing a waiver of the benefits of the Act by employees under specified conditions. In Jewell Ridge Coal Corp. v. Vance, 203 Va. 557, 125 S.E.2d 879, the employee contended that the waiver authorized under the Virginia statute was invalid because of the employee's ina......