Tingey v. Indus. Accident Comm'n

CARTER, J. After making an award of compensation to petitioner Clarence E. Tingey, the Industrial Accident Commission granted a rehearing and then found that- petitioner was employed by Eastern-Columbia, Inc., but that he did not receive any injury arising out of or occurring in the course of his employment.

The employer is in the merchandising business and has branch stores throughout southern California. Tingey had been its display manager for all of its stores for fifteen years. His immediate superior was J. M. Sieroty, the vice-president and general manager of the employer corporation. Sieroty testified that Tingey’s duties were “complete charge of our window displays, interior displays, our cabinet shop, that is a shop for the manufacture and maintenance of fixtures and equipment, as well as designing improvements for the general store operation. In addition to that Mr. Tingey helped us with lay-out of offices and practically all material pertinent to construction. Mr. Tingey also worked very closely with our architect on various building projects, from the smallest project that we have undertaken to the Ninth and Broadway building.” Tingey had no office hours and was authorized to establish his own.

During the early part of December, 1941, a Mr. Weinsten [638]who was manager of one of the employer’s branch stores discussed with Tingey plans for a new branch store to be opened by the employer of which Weinsten was to be the manager. Sieroty had discussed these plans with Tingey and Weinsten and had instructed Tingey “to lay out the store, allocate space for various departments according to Mr. Weinsten’s program, and to develop the store windows.”

On December 10, 1941, while carrying out that project Weinsten called at Tingey’s office at 10 a.m. pursuant to an appointment he had made to discuss plans for the store. The office was located in the employer’s building, on the lower floor of which it maintained its main store. The discussion continued until noon, the subject being about three-quarters covered, when the two men left the office to look at the show windows of the store in the building. At Weinsten’s suggestion they proceeded across the street to a restaurant to have lunch where they continued the discussion for about one hour while they were having lunch. They left the restaurant to cross the street to Tingey’s office. It was raining and the street next to the curb was flooded. They reached the center of the street by stepping on the bumper of a parked ear. The other side of the street being flooded also, they were transported at their request to the curb on the bumper of a passing motorist. Tingey was injured while stepping from the bumper to the sidewalk at the entrance to the employer’s store. Weinsten paid for the lunch.