Harlan, Kenneth

Kenneth Harlan claimed an August 3, 2010 injury while capping a sewage pipe on a new construction project at a home owned by Hiroshi Tange, working for Affordable Plumbing and Rooter (a dba of Rene Casarez). The WCJ found that although Casarez/Affordable held a contractor's license, the license was suspended as a matter of law because Affordable carried no workers' compensation insurance, rendering it an unlicensed contractor incapable of being an independent contractor. As a result, applicant was presumed to be the employee of the homeowner Tange, who controlled the project and benefitted from the labor. Farmers Insurance and Tange petitioned for reconsideration, arguing no contract existed between Affordable and Tange, that Tange did not employ applicant, and that the WCJ exceeded authority by raising the employer issue at a second trial. The WCAB adopted and incorporated the WCJ's report and denied reconsideration.