Goe v. State ex rel. Wyoming Worker's Compensation Division

In Goe v. State ex rel. Wyoming Worker's Compensation Division, 2002 WY 6, 38 P.3d 1063 (Wyo. 2002), a horse kicked and injured Mr. Goe while he was working as a hunting guide for an outfitter. The evidence showed that the wages paid by the employer fluctuated widely from pay period to pay period-Mr. Goe earned $ 560.75 in July, $ 1,000 in August, and $ 1,500 in September. Mr. Goe argued his actual monthly earnings for the purpose of computing TTD benefits were $ 1600, the amount he and his employer agreed he would have earned in October had he not been injured and been able to finish out the month. Id. The Court held: "The hearing examiner's decision to average Goe's income to determine the appropriate amount of TTD benefits was appropriate because Goe did not meet his burden to prove his actual monthly earnings were $ 1,600.00 per month." Id. The Court concluded the definition of "actual monthly earnings" was not applicable in Goe because the employee's earnings were "not consistent and fixed month after month." Id. Because the evidence showed Mr. Goe did not have actual monthly earnings as defined in 27-14-403 (j)(i) , the Court applied Chapter 6, Section 2(a)(i)(C) of the division's rules which expressly references averaging monthly wages in cases where the worker is "paid by other than hourly, weekly or monthly rate of pay."