Depending on your perspective, business travel is either an exciting part or a necessary evil of the job. No matter your perspective, most people assume if they are injured while traveling for business workers' compensation will cover the expenses incurred as a result of the injury.
An Australian woman believes injuries suffered during a sexual encounter should be covered. The woman's injuries to her nose and mouth resulted from a light falling off the wall above the bed in her motel room and striking her face.
She believes that the injuries were suffered "during the course of her employment" since she was staying in the motel for a business trip. And, her lawyer was quoted in the Herald Sun as saying that sexual relations are "an ordinary incident of life, commonly undertaken in a motel room at night;" therefore, she should receive workers' compensation for her injuries.
The Australian government agency responsible for worker safety, ComCare, is challenging the claim as saying the intimate activity is "not an ordinary incident of an overnight stay like showering, sleeping or eating." Further, ComCare contends having sexual relations was "a frolic of her own" that "took her outside the course of her employment" - also called a purely personal pursuit.
While this Australian case involves facts that would be outside the norm of common workers' compensation cases, it raises an important point: what activities undertaken on a business trip will be covered by workers' compensation should injuries be suffered?
New York Workers' Comp Law
While traveling, injuries that are suffered while engaging in activities in the course of business, including travel and while on the job, are considered workplace injuries covered by New York workers' compensation. In addition to those activities, injuries suffered from "reasonable activities" that are done to "satisfy ordinary physical needs" (such as showering or relaxing) while on a business trip will also be covered by workers' compensation.
Activities that lead to injuries that will not be covered include "purely personal pursuits" such as extending a business trip into a few days of vacation (during which the injury occurs). However, if a purely personal pursuit is required as a part of travel, any injuries that result from that activity may be covered.
It is important to remember that just because an injury occurs while on a business trip does not mean that workers' compensation will automatically cover the injury. Whether an injury stems from an activity that is either purely personal or done to satisfy ordinary physical needs is a question to be determined on a case by case basis.
While the result of the Australian woman's case will not set precedent for the American legal system, it does raise questions for all Americans that travel for business. If you have been injured while traveling for business, speak with an attorney with experience handling workers' compensation cases in New York.
