The consensus that usually prevails when the New Jersey Supreme Court decides workers' compensation claims was shattered this term when the Court dealt with an issue that could affect the ongoing school funding controversy.
Justice O'Hern, writing for the majority of the Court in Outland v. Monmouth-Ocean Education Service Commission, No. A-48-97, 1998 WL 387263 (N.J. July 1, 1998) determined that a teacher who was employed under a ten-month contract and who was injured during the school year was entitled to temporary compensation benefits during the summer recess period.
Joined by Justices Pollock, Stein and Coleman, the Court embraced the position that a teacher can be considered a "seasonal employee" and be entitled to temporary workers' compensation benefits for summer months even though he/she works under a ten-month contract as long as the teacher can demonstrate that she would have been entitled to compensation for wages earned in off-season employment.
The majority opinion reasoned that teachers often supplement their school earned income during the summer months to satisfy their financial obligations including mortgages and their children's college education funds.
The Court held that a teacher was considered to be a seasonal employee and that income could be anticipated over the summer recess through earnings of summer employment.