Ballerino v. W.C.A.B. (Darby Borough)
Dec 13, 2007OUTCOME: Court held in favor of Employer, Darby Borough
Angelo Ballerino (Claimant), a volunteer firefighter, petitioned for review of an order of the Workers' Compensation Appeal Board (Board) that calculated his disability compensation by using the statut ... ory formula established for voluntary firefighters. The statutory formula presumes that a volunteer firefighter receives at least the Statewide average weekly wage when disability compensation is awarded to a volunteer firefighter injured in the line of duty. Claimant asserts that his presumed statutory wage should have been combined with his pre-injury actual wage, which stacking would produce an increase in his disability compensation. The Board affirmed the decision of the Workers' Compensation Judge (WCJ) that the Workers' Compensation Act (Act) did not permit this stacking. The Court noted that the Section 601 scheme does not violate equal protection. "It rewards volunteer firefighters who perform a valuable service, and in doing so, removes a potential deterrent against citizens taking up this dangerous work on a volunteer basis. Encouraging volunteer firefighting is a public interest, and Section 601 advances that interest. Because it satisfies both prongs of the rational relationship test, it does not violate equal protection."
