Was Farm Company’s Truck Driver a ‘Farm Laborer’ Exempt from Delaware’s WCA?

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Townsend, DE (WorkersCompensation.com) -- In Delaware, employers generally are not required to provide workers’ compensation benefits to “farm laborers.” But what is a farm laborer? The picture that may come to mind is of someone working out in the fields all day loading hay or operating a tractor or other farm equipment.

A Delaware case involving a sharecropping company’s truck driver addresses how broadly courts may view the “farm laborer” exception. In that case, the driver was driving one of his employer’s trucks when he was injured in a motor vehicle accident. 

The driver’s job primarily involved delivering farm equipment and crops, such as bales of hay, for his employer. He would also use farm equipment to load straw and pre-baled hay onto the truck for transport. He also sometimes served as a mechanic in his employer’s shop.

The Industrial Accident Board denied the driver’s claim for benefits on the basis that he was a farm laborer. The employee challenged that decision in court, pointing out that he was a driver with a CDL license and 24 years of experience who spent 90 percent of his working hours driving a truck.

Delaware’s Workers’ Compensation Act does not apply to farm laborers. An exception to that rule applies where the employer carries insurance to insure the payment of compensation to such employees or their dependents. 

Was the employee a "farm laborer?"

A. No. He drove a truck, rather than engaging in farm work.

B. Yes. His function was integral to the farm operation.

If you selected B, you agreed with the court in Bailey v. RNJ Farms, LLC, No. No. N24A-02-003 JRJ. (Del. 07/24/24), which held that the claimant fell into the category of farm laborer.

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The court pointed out that whether one is a “farm laborer” hinges on one’s function or work for an employer. It was true that the driver spent most of his time driving the truck. He was, however, transporting farm supplies when he did so; he spent the majority of time transporting crops for the farm, which often included hay bales.

The court noted that the trucks the driver operated were part of the employer’s farm business because they were owned by the employer and used only to haul farm items.

“[B]ecause Employee was employed by the farm, loaded crops onto the farm's trucks, drove the trucks to the farm's customers to deliver the farm crops, Employee's employment was integral to the operation of the farm business, and Employee fit the designation of farm laborer,” the court wrote.

The court affirmed the Board’s decision.

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