The facts of this case are not in dispute. Claimant, Constance Lunn, was born on September 2, 1944, and was 62 years old at the time of the accident in question. Claimant was employed by Employer as a high school Language Arts teacher for the 2006-2007 academic year. Exhibit C was a four-page document identified as Claimant's teaching contract. The first page of Exhibit C is entitled "TEACHER'S EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT (Probationary Teachers)", the second page is entitled "CERTIFIED EMPLOYEE'S EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT EXTENDED DUTIES", the third page is a salary schedule, and the fourth page is a cover letter.
Employee: Constance Lunn Injury No. 06-084921
Prior to the date of injury, Corey Felton, Vice-Principal and Athletic Director at the high school, sent an e-mail to the teachers stating that he was looking for people to work the ticket gate and scoreboard for the high school's home football games. The e-mail stated that there would be some monetary compensation paid for this work. Claimant notified Felton that she would be available to work the ticket gate for multiple games, including the September 8, 2006 game. Felton scheduled Claimant to work the ticket gate for September 8, 2006.
On September 8, 2006, Claimant worked the school day teaching three freshman Language Arts classes and three sophomore Language Arts classes and related duties. She left the school premises for a time to go out to dinner with some other teachers. She returned to the high school, where she and another teacher, Kim Albers, met with Felton and were instructed as to their duties and responsibilities for the evening. Claimant and Albers worked the ticket booth prior to the football game and during the first half of the game, as instructed by Felton. At halftime, Claimant was leaving the "ticket booth" as she wanted to watch the marching band perform. The booth was small and cramped, and the doorway was very narrow. As Claimant was walking out of the doorway in a sideways fashion, her foot caught on the lip of the doorway. Claimant fell and it was immediately obvious that she had seriously injured her right upper extremity.
Claimant was taken by ambulance to Hermann Area Hospital, then transported to Boone Hospital Center in Columbia. Claimant was diagnosed with a right proximal humerus fracture. On September 15, 2006, Dr. Todd Oliver of Columbia Orthopaedic Group performed an open reduction and internal fixation procedure. Dr. Oliver placed Claimant at maximum medical improvement on February 12, 2007. On June 15, 2007, Dr. Oliver opined that she had sustained a 5 % permanent partial impairment of the right upper extremity. Claimant was seen by Dr. Robert Poetz for an independent medical examination on November 19, 2007. Dr. Poetz opined that Claimant sustained a permanent partial disability of 35 % of the right shoulder.
At some time after Claimant returned to work after her injury, Corey Felton went to Claimant and handed her a twenty-dollar bill, telling Claimant that it was for "working the ticket booth." Felton testified that there had been "no prior discussion" with Claimant as to how much she would be compensated for working the ticket booth.
Average weekly wage and compensation rates. The first major issue in this case is the calculation of Claimant's average weekly wage and resultant compensation rates. Employer paid Claimant 5/7 weeks of temporary total disability benefits at the weekly rate of approximately $\ 457.69. This rate appears to have been calculated by taking Claimant's annual salary per page one of Exhibit C ( $\ 35,700.00 ), and dividing it by 52 weeks (yielding an average weekly wage of $\ 686.54 and a compensation rate of $\ 457.69 ). Employer now takes the position, however, that Claimant's compensation rate should be the $\ 40.00 minimum weekly rate. Employer argues that
Claimant had (at least) ${ }^{1}$ two separate and distinct "employments" with Employer, and that Claimant's 9/8/06 accident and injury fell under the "ticket gate worker" employment, for which she was paid $\ 20.00. Employer argues that Claimant clearly sustained a compensable accident under the Missouri Workers' Compensation Law, but that the disability benefits should be based solely upon her $\ 20.00 "salary" as a one-time "ticket gate worker".
The evidence was that most, but not all, of the people who performed duties at the football games were otherwise employed by the school district. Felton testified that there was a retired school superintendent who worked football games and that there was at least one "school parent" who worked football games, and that each of these individuals received $\ 20.00 as compensation for their services during football games.
Employer argues that the language of Section 287.800.1 ("Administrative law judges ... shall construe the provisions of this chapter strictly") compels a finding that Claimant's compensation rate should be the forty-dollar minimum. However, I find nothing in Section 287.020 ("definitions"), Section 287.030 ("Employer defined") or Section 287.250 (computation of average weekly wage) that states, or even suggests, that, for purposes of computing an average weekly wage, various aspects of an employee's employment with an employer be segregated (as Employer suggests). Employer does