Todd Shipyards Corp. v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, U.S. Department of Labor

This case presents the narrow issue whether an employer may obtain relief under section 8(f) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA), 33 U.S.C. § 908 (f) (1982) (as amended), 1 when the employee/claimant is awarded a de minimis disability benefit for the purpose of keeping available that employee’s right to seek modification of the award until the economic effects of the disability become apparent. The Benefits Review Board (Board) of the United States Department of Labor affirmed an administrative law judge’s (AU) decision denying the claim of the employer (Todd) for section 8(f) relief. We affirm.

FACTS

Porras, an employee of Todd, sustained a series of work-related injuries from 1976 to October 3, 1980, and applied for permanent partial disability benefits under the LHWCA. The AU found a permanent partial disability resulting from the original injury and the cumulative effect of subsequent injuries, but also found that Porras had no immediate wage-earning loss because Porras had a five-year contract for light work at full salary. The AU declined to estimate in dollar terms the potential economic effects of the disability but instead granted Porras a…