- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Notice of accident (just claim)
- Board Directives and Guidelines (stress, mental) (traumatic event)
The worker, who was employed as a firefighter from 1979 to 1992, took his own life on July 26, 1992. The worker's estate filed a claim for benefits with the WSIB in February 2018. The estate claimed that the worker's suicide was attributable to a mental stress condition the worker developed as a result of his employment as a firefighter in which he was exposed to traumatic incidents. In the decision dated August 5, 2022, the ARO denied an extension of time to file the claim, under s.22(5) of the pre-1997 Workers' Compensation Act (pre-1997 Act), based on the finding, under the WSIB's psychotraumatic disability policy, that the claim was not a "just one." These issues under appeal were entitlement to an extension of the section 22 time limit to file the claim, and, entitlement to benefits for traumatic mental stress (TMS).
The Panel allowed the appeal.Under section 22 of the pre-1997 Act, a claim was to be filed within 6 months of the accident in order for benefits to be payable, unless "the claim for compensation is a just one and ought to be allowed." Because there was no WSIB policy in place with respect to mental stress claims prior to January 1, 1998, these claims are adjudicated on a case by case basis, applying a three part "average worker" test. The Panel found that the worker's entitlement for a mental stress condition (diagnosed posthumously as PTSD), and ultimately his suicide, was established, and therefore the claim was a just one. For this reason, the s. 22 time limit to file the claim was waived. Firstly, there was no dispute that in his job as a firefighter the worker was exposed to traumatic events. Second, while the worker was not diagnosed with PTSD prior to his death, it was clear from the evidence that he suffered from a mental stress condition, in the fact that he took his own life on July 26, 1992. Third, the Panel considered the various statements in evidence, from the worker's widow, several family members, friends who were also fellow firefighters as well as records from his employer, which describe the worker's personality changes, emotional issues and alcohol use to manage his stress, all of which in the opinion of psychologist Dr. J. J. Gouws, in his report dated March 15, 2021, indicated that the worker had PTSD resulting from exposure to work trauma and that it was this condition that led to him taking his own life.The Panel accepted that the worker was exposed to traumatic incidents in his employment as a firefighter from 1979 until his death in 1992, incidents that the average worker would find stressful, that placed him at risk of developing a mental stress condition, and that these events significantly contributed to his development of PTSD, and in turn his death by suicide. The facts of this case satisfied the test under the pre-1997 Act.