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Kunkle v. State4/14/2005
siness-related purposes; and the employee regularly works at or from that place of business." The Workers' Compensation Act does not define "a principal place of business."
However, Chapter 1, Section 4(t) of the Division's rules and regulations defines it as follows:
(t) Principal Place of Business. For purposes of W.S. §27-14-301(b), a "principal place of business within the state established for legitimate business-related purposes" must have the following characteristics:
(i) exclusive use of fixed premises with recognizable physical and mailing addresses:
(ii) at least one employee who regularly performs most of his services for the business in or out of the fixed premises;
(iii) the business is regularly accessible by telephone and mail at the fixed premises; and
(vi) the business regularly conducts its primary business or necessary ancillary services at the fixed premises.
[ ] We consider each element of the rule as it applies to Demler. First, we must address the Division's argument that Demler did not occupy a "fixed premises," because that term appears in each element of the rule. The term "fixed premises" is not defined by either the Wyoming Workers' Compensation Act or the workers' compensation rules and regulations. According to Webster's New World Dictionary 528 (2d ed. 1972), the word "fixed" means "firmly placed or attached; not movable, unmoving, resolute." As the record shows, Demler maintained an office in a construction trailer that was located in the same place for at least one year. While it was apparently capable of being moved, it was not moved, and provided support for a job of substantial duration. Within the trailer, Demler had a designated area in which its employees worked and provided support to the masonry project.
[ ] Section 4(t)(i) of the Division's rules requires "exclusive use of fixed premises with recognizable physical and mailing addresses." Demler shared a trailer on the job site with the general contractor. Mr. Kunkle testified that Demler had exclusive use of its portion of the trailer. "[The general contractor] had an office this side of the trailer; then [Demler] had their . . . office over there, you know." The Division seems to suggest that simply because Demler's office was in a construction trailer shared with the general contractor it was not the "exclusive use of a fixed premises." We find that reading of the statute and the workers' compensation rules and regulations unreasonable. To require that employers occupy a certain type of structure or refrain from sharing facilities in order for the employment to qualify as principally located in Wyoming would go far beyond § 27-14-301(b). As we noted in Cochran v. State ex rel. Wyo. Workers' Safety and Compensation Div., 993 P.2d 320 (Wyo. 1999), the Division lacks the power to legislate and is limited to the authority granted to it by the legislature. There was also testimony that Demler maintained a post office box in Jackson, thus complying with "recognizable physical and mailing address."
[ ] Section 4(t)(ii) of the Division's rules requires that at least one employee must regularly perform most of his services for the business in or out of the fixed premises. Mr. Kunkle's uncontested testimony indicated that Demler had a secretary that worked out of the construction trailer.
[ ] Section 4(t)(iii) of the Division's rules mandates that the business be regularly accessible by telephone and mail at the fixed premises. Mr. Kunkle testified the trailer contained a "land line" telephone and a cell phone for use in connection with the business. Demler had a working fax machine in the trailer
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