97 A.D.2d 579 | N.Y. App. Div. | 1983
Appeals from decisions of the Workers’ Compensation Board, filed December 4, 1979 and August 13, 1982. On February 13, 1978, claimant, an inside employee at Areata Graphics, a printing plant located in Depew, New York, left his place of employment at the end of the 3:30 to 11:30 p.m. shift. He exited the plant premises at the west entrance to the plant parking lot, it being his intention to walk to a parking area outside of the plant where by prearrangement his wife would pick him up. He was struck by an automobile and sustained serious injuries. Immediately in front of the west entrance is the George Urban Boulevard, a public thoroughfare with two traffic lanes running east and west. The space between the plant and the boulevard is occupied by an employee parking lot. To enter or exit the plant, employees must cross the parking lot which has entrances onto the boulevard located at both the east and west ends of the lot. To facilitate the movement of employees into and out of the plant, the employer received permission from the town to install a traffic light on the George Urban Boulevard at the west entrance to the parking lot. The light is controlled by a timer located within the plant and is synchronized to the employees’ shift changes. The traffic light is controlled, operated and maintained by the employer and for approximately one and one-half to two hours before and after each shift change the light operates in the red and green mode. At all other times the light flashes red and yellow. On July 19, 1978, claimant filed for benefits contending that the accident had occurred in the precincts of his employment. The claim was originally disallowed by the referee. Upon review, the board unanimously reversed and established the compensability of the injuries. The sole issue for our consideration on this
