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Necessity of Payment for "Employee" Designation
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To qualify for workers' compensation benefits, an individual must be an "employee." An important consideration in the determination of "employee" status is whether or not the individual receives payment for his labor. Workers' compensation is meant to provide the injured employee with a portion of his lost wages. If there is no payment for the worker's labor, he is not an employee for hire and has no "lost wages" that workers' compensation benefits can help replace.
Though an express agreement may not have been entered into, the issue of pay is generally implied. However, there are circumstances where such an implication is not warranted. This occurs when the individual is performing voluntary charitable work. Another situation where payment is usually not implied is that of the minor child performing services for the parent. In the absence of an express contract of hire, this is generally considered normal family activity. Finally, the implication that pay is expected is negated when the individual performs work to further his own interests.
Payment for the employee's work is not limited to the receipt of money. "Payment" can generally take on the form of anything of value that the employee receives in exchange for his labor. For example, the employee may work for the employer and receive free lodging and food in exchange. For another example, consider the student teacher who receives training in her field while performing services for the school system. Copyright 2009 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.
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