Johnson, Tilmon

Applicant Tilmon Johnson, a machine operator, sustained a specific hand injury on October 1, 2015 (and claimed a cumulative injury 10-1-2011 through 10-1-2015) while working at Venice Baking Company (VBC), where he was placed as a special employee by BaronHR, LLC (BHR), a Professional Employer Organization. VBC's Republic Indemnity policy excluded VBC's special employees, so coverage turned on whether BHR or its downstream PEO tiers (Bison Data Systems and Countrywide Payroll) had secured valid workers' compensation coverage. The arbitrator found a purported Transportation Insurance Company COI was a forgery, that the Hartford/BDS policy covered only 'clerical office employees' and thus did not cover a machine operator, and that BHR failed to meet its burden of proving coverage under any policy. The arbitrator concluded BHR was uninsured for the claim. The WCAB adopted the arbitrator's report and denied BHR's Petition for Reconsideration.