Guzzo v. Westinghouse Electric Corp.
Guzzo v. Westinghouse Electric Corp.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
Westinghouse Electric Corporation, formerly the employer of Nunzio Guzzo, has appealed from an order (without opinion) of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County affirming an order of the Workmen’s Compensation Appeal Board remanding the matter of Guzzo’s claim petition to a referee for the appointment
Guzzo’s claim petition alleging total disability caused by “Epoxy Poisoning — Acute Neurosis” was filed pursuant to The Pennsylvania Occupational Disease Act, Act of June 21, 1939, P.L. 566, as amended, 77 P.S. §1201 et seq. At the referee’s hearing, the claimant adduced evidence tending to show that he suffers from dermatitis induced by the poisoning effect of epoxy resin, a material handled by him in his employment by Westinghouse; that epoxy poisoning is not a disease common to the general population; and that the claimant is totally disabled as the result of neurosis induced by dermatitis. The condition of neurosis and its relationship to the claimant’s dermatitis was testified to by a general practitioner. Westinghouse adduced the testimony of qualified physicians specializing in dermatology that the claimant’s dermatitis was not caused by epoxy poisoning. The referee found that the claimant had failed to establish by sufficient competent evidence that he suffers from or is disabled as the result of an occupational disease. The Board, although doubtful whether neurosis caused by an occupational disease is compensable,, remanded for expert psychiatric evidence because the claimant’s only proof of neurosis was the opinion of a general practitioner.
The claimant contends that the appeal from the Board’s order of remand was interlocutory and should be quashed.
Westinghouse contends first that the Board was without power to remand, citing Gibson-Boulevard, Inc. v. Workmen’s Compensation Appeal Board, 19 Pa. Commonwealth Ct. 147, 338 A.2d 697 (1975), and Forbes Pavilion Nursing Home, Inc. v. Workmen’s Compensation Appeal Board, 18 Pa. Commonwealth Ct. 352, 336 A.2d 440 (1975). In the cases just cited we held that amendments made to The Pennsylvania Workmen’s Compensa
Westinghouse further contends that our case of United Metal Fabricators, Inc. v. Zindash, 8 Pa. Commonwealth Ct. 339, 301 A.2d 708 (1973), where we entertained and sustained an employer’s appeal from an order of remand, requires a reversal of the orders below and reinstatement of the referee’s order denying compensation. In Zindash we concluded upon an examination of the record that the claimant had established by his own testimony that he had not been injured in an accident at work, and by his treating physician’s testimony that his physical problem for which compensation was claimed was solely related to an injury sustained prior to the accident alleged as its cause. In the instant case, there
Appeal quashed.
. Act of June 2, 1915, P.L. 736, as amended, 77 P.S. §851 et seq.
. Act of June 21, 1939, P.L. 566, as amended, 77 P.S. §1201 ct seq.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.