Heiman v. WCAB
Petitioner, a professional property manager, hired an unlicensed and uninsured contractor to install rain gutters on a condominium building, and an employee of the contractor was seriously injured on the first day of the job. The Workers Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) concluded that petitioner was the employer liable for workers compensation. Petitioner contends that the WCAB erred because petitioner was instructed to hire the unlicensed contractor as the agent of the condominium homeowners association or the condominium owners, which were found not liable for workers compensation under the Labor Code.
Court conclude that petitioner and the unlicensed contractor were dual employers that are jointly and severally liable for workers compensation. The unlicensed contractor employed the injured employee, and petitioner hired the unlicensed contractor as a professional property manager and the agent of the homeowners association. The homeowners association was not an owner or exempt employer under the Labor Code. Even if petitioner was the agent of the condominium owners, an agent may be liable for performing an act authorized by the principal whose rights are not imputed to the agent. Since liability for an agents authorized act is imputed to the principal and the homeowners association was a legal entity separate from the owners, we further conclude that the liability of petitioner as agent is imputed to the homeowners association as principal.
Accordingly, the WCABs decision is affirmed in part and annulled in part, and the matter is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
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