In Republic Steel Corp. v. Workmen's Compensation Appeal Board (Petrisek), 537 Pa. 32, 640 A.2d 1266 (1994), the claimant voluntarily retired from work as a coal miner in 1981 and filed a claim petition for pneumoconiosis in 1988. Id. at 33, 640 A.2d at 1267. The referee 3 and the Board found that the claimant was entitled to compensation. Id. at 34, 640 A.2d at 1267 The employer appealed, arguing that the claimant was not entitled to benefits because he had voluntarily retired, had no intention of returning to work and, therefore, suffered no wage loss associated with his occupational disease. Id.