Could Worker Whose Leg was Crushed by a 3,000-lb Pipe in Pa. Collect W. Va. Benefits?

When an employee of a West Virginia company is injured while working in another state, which state pays? As one case shows, this tends to hinge on how long the claimant worked in the other state.

The claimant’s West Virginia employer assigned him to work on a project at Waste Management in Greencastle, Pennsylvania. He worked there continuously starting in July 2022.

In January 2023, a 3,000 pound pipe fell on his right leg and crushed it. The leg had to be amputated. He sought and received workers’ compensation benefits in Pennsylvania. But he also submitted a claim in West Virginia, where his employer was headquartered. 

The project in Pennsylvania was temporary, according to the claimant, and had an original end date of October 2022, but it was extended to January 2023. He also pointed out that he and the employer did not have an agreement that he would be covered, if injured at work, by a state other than West Virginia.

The claims administrator in West Virginia rejected the claim for lack of jurisdiction. A court of appeals agreed, and the claimant took his case to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals.

The court explained that employees covered under West Virginia workers’ compensation laws include employees of a West Virginia company when their duties “necessitate employment of a temporary or transitory nature by the same employer” in another state. W. Va. Code § 23-2-1a.

West Virginia regulations define “temporary” and “transitory” as a period not exceeding 30 calendar days within any 365 day period.

Did West Virginia have jurisdiction over leg injury claim?

A. No. He worked in Pennsylvania continuously for well over 30 calendar days.

B. Yes. Even though the claimant worked in Pennsylvania for months, the project was intended to be short.

If you selected A, you agreed with the court in Heavener v. J.F. Allen Company, No. No. 24-210 (West Virginia Sup. Ct. App. 02/11/25), which held that Pennsylvania, not West Virginia, had jurisdiction over the claim.

For a worker who is injured in another state to be eligible for the benefits of the West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act, the worker must have worked regularly in West Virginia prior to his injury, and the  injury  must  have  occurred  while he was temporarily working in the other state.

Here, the court noted that the claimant’s employment in Pennsylvania was not temporary or transitory given that he worked there continuously for months before getting injured.

The court also rejected the claimant’s contention that while Pennsylvania assumed jurisdiction over his claim and provided benefits, he and the employer did not have an agreement that he would be covered by a state other than West Virginia.

“While the Act permits extraterritorial agreements, it does not require them,” the court wrote.

The court affirmed an appellate court’s ruling.

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