Buksh v Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd - [2021] NSWPIC 36

CERTIFICATE OF DETERMINATION OF MEMBER
CITATION:	Buksh v Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd [2021] NSWPIC 36
APPLICANT:	Rameen Damien Buksh
RESPONDENT:	Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd
MEMBER:	Ms Jaqueline Snell
DATE OF DECISION:	22 March 2021
CATCHWORDS:	WORKERS COMPENSATION- Claim for weekly benefits and medical and related treatment expenses resulting from injury sustained on 12 June 2020 due to the nature and conditions of the applicant’s employment; the respondent placed injury and incapacity in issue; Held– the applicant sustained injury to his right knee on 12 June 2020 in the course of his employment with the respondent and the applicant’s employment with the respondent was a substantial contributing factor to injury; the applicant had no current capacity for work between 16 June 2020 and 27 January 2021 and the respondent is to make payments of weekly benefits under section 36 and section 37 of the 1987 Act accordingly; the applicant required medical treatment and services as a consequence of the injury he sustained to his right knee and the respondent is to pay the applicant’s medical and related treatment in the sum of $2,079 in accordance with section 59 and section 60 of the 1987 Act.
DETERMINATIONS MADE:	1. The applicant sustained injury to his right knee in the course of his employment with the respondent on 12 June 2020 and the applicant’s employment with the respondent was a substantial contributing factor to the injury. 2. The applicant has no current capacity for work resulting from the injury he sustained to his right knee. The applicant has an entitlement to weekly benefits payable under ss 36 and 37 of the Workers Compensation Act 1987 (the 1987 Act). The applicant’s pre-injury average weekly earnings (PIAWE) is agreed at $560.50. The respondent is to make payments of weekly benefits to the applicant in accordance with s 36(1)(a) of the 1987 Act from 16 June 2020 to 15 September 2020 (13 weeks) at the rate of $532.48. The respondent is to make payments of weekly benefits to the applicant in accordance with s 37(1)(a) of the 1987 Act from 16 September 2020 to 27 January 2021 at the rate of $448.40. The applicant’s PIAWE will be adjusted in accordance with s 82A of the 1987 Act. 3. The applicant requires medical treatment and services as a consequence of the injury he sustained to his right knee. The respondent is to pay the applicant’s medical and related treatment in the sum of $2,079, in accordance with ss 59 and 60 of the 1987 Act.

STATEMENT OF REASONS

BACKGROUND

Rameen Damien Buksh (the applicant) is 22 years of age. At the time the applicant sustained injury the subject of these proceedings, the applicant was employed by Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd (the respondent) as a spray painter, having commenced his employment with the respondent in or about September 2018.
The applicant sustained meniscal tear to his left knee when playing football in September 2019, being injury which is not a work-related injury.
The applicant said that his work…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Buksh v Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd

Details

AGLC: Buksh v Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd [2021] NSWPIC 36
Case: [2021] NSWPIC 36
Decision Date: 22 March 2021

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter of Buksh v Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd was before the Court, which heard a claim for workers compensation benefits and expenses related to an injury sustained by the applicant, Mr Buksh, on 12 June 2020. The respondent, Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd, contested the claim by questioning the nature and extent of the injury, as well as its connection to Mr Buksh’s employment. The case was adjudicated in the Court, which was tasked with determining the validity of Mr Buksh’s claims under the relevant workers compensation legislation.

The primary legal issues addressed by the Court were whether Mr Buksh sustained an injury in the course of his employment with the respondent, and if so, whether this injury and the resulting incapacity were substantially contributed to by his employment. Furthermore, the Court needed to ascertain the duration of Mr Buksh's incapacity and the amount of medical treatment expenses incurred due to the injury. These issues were pivotal in determining the compensation Mr Buksh was entitled to receive under the 1987 Act.

The Court examined the evidence presented by both parties and concluded that Mr Buksh did indeed sustain an injury to his right knee on 12 June 2020 while in the course of his employment with Programmed Skilled Workforce Ltd. This injury and the resultant incapacity were significantly contributed to by his employment. It was also determined that Mr Buksh had no capacity to work from 16 June 2020 to 27 January 2021. Consequently, the Court ordered the respondent to make weekly benefits payments to Mr Buksh under sections 36 and 37 of the 1987 Act. Additionally, the Court found that Mr Buksh required medical treatment for his injury and mandated the respondent to pay the sum of $2,079 for the medical and related treatment expenses under sections 59 and 60 of the 1987 Act.

Orders