The family of a Guatemalan farm worker who was killed in 2021 while attempting to fix a flat tire on his employer’s vehicle was awarded compensation by the Court of Appeal of Quebec. In a majority decision of 2-1, the high court ruled that Ottoniel Lares Batzibal’s estate should have been compensated because he was working when he died. Previously, an administrative tribunal had denied the claim because they didn’t believe the death fit the criteria of a workplace death.
An administrative judge found that Batzibal was using his employer’s car outside work hours and that his “good intentions” to fix a flat tire were not related to his official duties and therefore did not qualify for death benefits.
A Quebec Superior Court judge then dismissed a request for judicial review. The estate eventually was granted leave to appeal the matter before the Court of Appeal.In the July 31 ruling, two of the three-judge panel ruled the worker’s death was an occupational injury and the appeal should be allowed.
Justice Julie Dutil found that the administrative tribunal’s definition of workplace accident or death was too narrow as opposed to “a broad and liberal interpretation” as is established by the courts. Dutil wrote the circumstances of the death would have established “a sufficient link between the accident and Mr. Batzibal’s work to conclude that the accident occurred ‘in the course of work.’”
Justice Marie-France Bich, concurring with Dutil, also noted that the administrative tribunal did not take into account Batzibal’s status as a seasonal agricultural worker or the fact that he lived nearby in accommodations provided by his employer.
Guatemalan man’s estate entitled to redress after court says death was linked to work
