1) Whether Employee sustained an occupational disease arising out of and in the course of his employment;
2) Is Employer liable for future medical care to cure and relieve the effects of the Employee's injury.
Claimant testified on his behalf and presented Exhibits A and B which were admitted into evidence without objection.
The Employer presented witnesses Chris Nehrbass and Aaron Fife and Exhibits 1-5 all of which were admitted into evidence without objection.
Based on the entire record, Claimant's credible testimony, medical records and the testimony of the Employer's witnesses, Chris Nehrbass (Nehrbass) and Aaron Fife (Fife), and the applicable law in the state of Missouri, I find Claimant sustained an occupational disease which arose out of and in the course of his employment.
Claimant currently works on the assembly line at Harley-Davidson and has since June 1, 2001. Since 2003, he has worked in the Tank Weld Department. Claimant testified that his normal work shift was forty hours a week. Claimant works the night shift and at present based on the production needs of the plant, he is working overtime resulting in an average of 50-64 hours per week.
The Tank Weld Department assignment includes rotating to approximately 20 different stations over a two to three week period of time. All of the 20 different stations require specific tasks requiring use of both hands in a repetitive manner. Claimant testified that he would work at one station for the entire 10 -hour shift. Claimant testified and demonstrated the many repetitive tasks he performed with both hands at several different stations including grabbing, twisting, aligning parts, pinching and gripping. He also uses a vibratory sander that vibrates in his hands when he uses it.
Employer witness Fife also testified that the Claimant works at approximately 20 different stations over a two to three week period. Employer/Insurer admitted a DVD/Video of Claimant into evidence, performing the duties required in two of the stations where he routinely works. Clamant pointed out and Fife admitted that the DVD depicted only two of the 20 work stations Claimant regularly works in. I watched the video and observed that Claimant used both hands in order to accomplish his work demands. (Ex. 2)
Since the video only depicted two of Claimant's job tasks, I relied on his testimony regarding the other duties of his job. Claimant testified at length regarding those various job duties and the motions that were required of his wrists and arms in order to accomplish those job tasks all of which I find to be repetitive in nature. Claimant's entire job involves the repetitive use of his bilateral upper extremities. He is required to grip, twist, grab and grasp tools, parts and machines on a frequent basis.
In addition, I personally observed in the video everything Claimant testified to in detail regarding that portion of the multi-step process required of an employee in the Weld Tank Department of the assembly line. Each of these tasks requires the repetitive use of both of the worker's hands.
Claimant stated that he told his supervisor on November 30, 2015 that his hands were numb to a point they hurt. He reported an injury on December 16, 2015. He testified that he did not feel comfortable making the report until December 16, 2015 because he was worried that he would get fired if he reported the injury. However, his hands got to a point he could not take the constant pain and numbness anymore. Claimant filled out an accident report (Ex. 3) wherein he referenced some of the repetitive motions his job required.
Employer immediately sent Employee for treatment in their in-house health clinic. Claimant participated in a four-week early intervention program. He testified that he first met with a therapist on December 22, 2015. The early intervention program did not provide Claimant any relief and he was then referred to Dr. Brett A. Miller. Dr. Miller examined Claimant at the Harley Davidson plant and then ordered an EMG of both of his hands. Dr. Miller's February 11, 2016 report states that he was going to walk through the plant and observe Claimant's job duties. Claimant testified that this did not happen. The March 15, 2016 EMG found Claimant to have severe bi-lateral carpal tunnel syndrome. (Ex. 3)
Employer contracted with Blankenheim Services to perform a risk assessment analysis of the Tank Weld Department. On March 1, 2016 Chris Nehrbass an Engineering Manager from Blankenheim Services visited the Harley Davidson facility where Claimant worked. Nehrbass observed and videotaped Claimant performing his job duties in two stations in the Tank Weld Department. He observed Claimant performing his job duties in a third station as well. Nehrbass testified that he was informed that the Claimant's position required him to work in approximately 20 stations over a two-three week time period. Nehrbass testified that he was not going to be in the facility long enough to observe Claimant perform his job duties in all 20 stations so he focused on three of the stations that Claimant mentioned in his injury report dated December 16, 2015. In his report, he includes that Claimant told him that all or most stations within his work rotation either contribute or exacerbate his symptoms and that he could not identify a specific task as the primary contributor to his injuries.
Claimant is requesting medical treatment as recommended by Dr. Anne Rosenthal. Dr. Rosenthal diagnosed Claimant with bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. Dr. Rosenthal physically examined Claimant, reviewed his medical treatment that was provided by the Employer up to the date of her examination including the causation assessment provided by Dr. Miller. I do not find Dr. Miller's opinion to be credible.