From Puppy Fences to Compensation: A Case for Employer Vigilance in Remote Work Arrangements

Overview

A recent decision in South Australia has found that a council worker who fractured her arm and injured her knee after tripping over a puppy fence during a coffee break while working from home is eligible to workers' compensation.

Facts

A Council employee of the City of Charles Sturt, whose duties were mainly office-based, like most employees in the modern day, was occasionally permitted to work from home without the requirement of specific justification.

While working from home, the employee did not receive any direction from her Council employer about what activities were permitted during authorised breaks.

Decision

The South Australian Employment Tribunal found that the employee had set up a temporary 60 centimetre metal pet fence across the doorway to her sunroom, which served as her home office. This fence had been erected so that the employee could babysit a colleague's puppy while she worked from home.

During a coffee break at approximately 9:00am to 9:30am, the employee tripped over the fence while attempting to step over it. She suffered a fractured humerus and injured her right knee when she landed on her right side. Following her injury, she made a claim against the Local Government Association Workers Compensation Scheme.

Auxiliary Deputy President Magistrate Jodie Carrel accepted that coffee breaks were normal practice for the employee and would have occurred at the same time if she had been working in the office. Magistrate Carrel concluded that the injuries sustained “arose out of her employment” during an "authorised coffee break at her place of employment", satisfying clause 7(5)(b) of the Return to Work Act 2014 (SA) (the Act), which includes attending the workplace during an authorised break.

Magistrate Carrel further found that the pet fence constituted a workplace hazard, despite being self-installed by the employee and unknown to the Council employer. Under the no-fault statutory compensation scheme, this hazard meets the criteria of a significant contributing cause under section 7(2) of the Act.

Lessons for Employers

This decision reinforces that employers have a duty of care to ensure the health and safety of their employees, even when they work from home. Magistrate Carell observed that while working from home arrangements offer benefits for both employers and workers, it also introduces unique risks associated with private residences.

Employers can take steps to mitigate risks, including:

1. conducting regular risk assessments: Work with employees to assess and update the safety of home workspaces, especially after any changes to the remote working environment;
2. providing appropriate equipment: Supply necessary equipment to enable safe and ergonomic working conditions for employees home workspaces; and
3. managing mental health risks: Proactively manage issues such as stress, isolation, or overwork.

By taking these measures, employers can better support their employees and minimise liability arising from home-based work arrangements.