State of California v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd.
Opinion
Opinion
Nares, J.
The sole question in this proceeding is whether the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB or Board) has jurisdiction to impose a penalty for unreasonable delay in payment of industrial disability leave (IDL) to which an injured state employee is entitled under Government Code section 19869 et seq. There is no specific legislative directive by which to resolve this issue. However, we conclude the WCAB had jurisdiction to impose the penalty as it did in this case. Our conclusion is based on the Legislature’s definition of IDL as identical with temporary disability indemnity (TD) under the Labor Code (Gov. Code, § 19870, subd. (a)), the Board’s unquestioned jurisdiction of TD which is also available to an injured state employee, the Board’s construction of its authority which is not clearly erroneous, the Legislature’s salutary general purpose in authorizing the penalty in cases of unreasonably delayed payment, and the requirement that statutory enactments pertaining to workers’ compensation are to be construed liberally in favor of the injured worker. Thus, we affirm the order.