- Loss of earnings {LOE} (lay-off)
- Loss of earnings {LOE} (termination of employment)
The worker suffered a knee injury in July 2014. He was laid off by the employer in September 2014. The worker appealed a decision of the Appeals Resolution Officer denying full LOE benefits after September 2014.
The worker was hired by the employer for two consecutive summers. He worked for about six weeks in the summer of 2013. In 2014, he was hired in June. After the accident in July, the employer provided modified work until he was laid off at the end of the season in September 2014.The ARO applied Board Operational Policy Manual, Document No. 15-06-02, on entitlement following temporary work disruptions. However, the Vice-Chair found that this policy was not applicable to the case. The worker was not laid off in a temporary work disruption. The work was seasonal from the employer's point of view. However, the Vice-Chair noted that there was no continuing employment relationship with the worker from one season to the next. The worker's employment was terminated by the employer at the end of each summer. The worker could re-apply the next summer, but there was a bidding process each summer to determine who would be hired. There was no collective agreement and no right of recall.The Vice-Chair concluded that, when the worker was laid off in September 2014, his employment was terminated. The applicable policy was Document No. 15-06-03, on permanent work disruptions. Applying this policy, and considering the worker's ongoing knee problems, the Vice-Chair concluded that the worker was entitled to ongoing full LOE benefits.The appeal was allowed.