170 Ga. App. 819 | Ga. Ct. App. | 1984
Verdell Ponder sued Southern Tea Company to recover damages for loss of consortium resulting from a back injury sustained by her husband, Arnee Ponder, while working for Southern Tea Company. Subsequent to the injury, Arnee Ponder and Southern Tea Company entered into a settlement agreement, which was approved by the State Board of Workers’ Compensation, whereby Arnee Ponder relinquished all claims arising out of the work accident in exchange for $37,500. The trial court granted Southern Tea Company’s motion for summary judgment and Verdell Ponder appeals.
The applicable statute here, OCGA § 34-9-11 (formerly Code Ann § 114-103), provides in pertinent part: “The rights and the remedies granted to an employee by this chapter shall exclude all other rights and remedies of such employee, his personal representative, parents, dependents, or next of kin, at common law or otherwise, on account of such injury, loss of service, or death; . . .” The exclusiveness of the workers’ compensation remedy also applies to the spouse of the injured worker. Gulf States Ceramic v. Fenster, 228 Ga. 400 (185 SE2d 801) (1971); Mize v. Questor Corp., 131 Ga. App. 361 (206 SE2d 97)
Appellant’s final enumeration of error challenging the application of OCGA § 34-9-11 to her loss of consortium claim has been decided adversely to her. Gulf States Ceramic, supra, at 401. See Massey v. Thiokol Chem. Corp., 368 FSupp. 668, 676 (1973).
Judgment affirmed.