A Tasmanian worker who slipped on a wet log and broke his femur while walking his dog around a lake has won a workers' compensation case against his employer. The injured man worked for an electric company and was required to live in the employer's accommodation. When he was injured, he was on call for work duties.
The employer disputed the claim, as the man was walking his dog when he was injured, and argued that the injury did not arise out of or in the course of employment.
The Tasmanian Workers' Rehabilitation and Compensation Tribunal upheld the claim of the worker. Legal representation for the worker stated that the case emphasizes that injuries that are sustained during non-work activities while an employee is either on-call or away on location for work can be compensable, even when the required connection between the activity and the employment can be tenuous.