Louie had been working for the Pig & Pork Trucking Company for ten years as an over-the-road truck driver. Pig & Pork Trucking Company had their home office in Indiana. When Louie was hired, he went out to Indiana to fill out his employment application.

On August 17th, Louie was driving back from the west coast on I-80 not far from the Bloomsburg Exit. For some unknown reason, a car that was passing Louie went out of control directly in front of Louie. Poor Louie was badly injured, and it looked like he was going to miss an extended period of time of work.

Louie’s employer insisted that Louie file his comp claim in the state of Indiana since that is where his employer was located, and that is where Louie signed his contract of employment. Louie insisted that he was entitled to workers’ compensation benefits under Pennsylvania law.

Question: Who is right?

Answer: Louie is right. It doesn’t matter that Louie lives in Pennsylvania, but any individual that is hurt while in the scope and course of their employment in the state of Pennsylvania, regardless of where the employer is located or where the contract for employment was entered into, has a right to proceed under the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act. Injured employees oftentimes select Pennsylvania when they can because of Pennsylvania’s favorable benefit allowance for injured workers.

Disclaimer: The above article is for instructive purposes only and each case is fact sensitive. Consultation with an attorney should be obtained instead of reliance upon the legal issues discussed in this column.