Lockheed Shipbuilding v. Director, Office of Workers Compensation Programs, U.S. Department of Labor

This appeal arises under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, 33 U.S.C. § 901 et seq. (“the Act”).

On June 4, 1984, Mehmet Sekin, an employee of Lockheed Shipbuilding Company (“Lockheed”) who had worked for Lockheed since at least 1977, experienced extreme pain in his back radiating down into his right leg while fitting steel I-Beams into a deck frame with a 16-pound hammer. The administrative law judge (“AD”) found that Sekin was disabled by this injury, but granted Lockheed relief under section 8(f) of the Act. The Benefits Review Board (“Board”) reversed the AD’s section 8(f) limitation. Lockheed appeals. We reverse the Board’s decision.

Section 8(f) of the Act limits, in certain instances, the liability of an employer for disability payments under the Act. 33 U.S.C. § 908 (f)(1). “By so limiting an employer’s liability, Congress wished to facilitate and encourage the hiring of partially disabled people.” Todd Pac. Shipyards v. Director, OWCP, 913 F.2d 1426, 1429 (9th Cir.1990); see also Container Stevedoring Co. v. Director, OWCP, 935 F.2d 1544 , 1553 n. 2 (9th Cir.1991) (concurring opinion). Congress sought to ensure that employers would not hesitate…