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Younger v. City and County of Denver5/6/1991
We granted certiorari to review the decision by the court of appeals in Younger v. City and County of Denver, 796 P.2d 38 (Colo. App. 1990), affirming the denial of workers' compensation benefits to claimant, Sandra J. Younger (Younger), for an injury sustained during a pre-employment physical agility test. We affirm.
I.
Younger was employed by the City and County of Denver as a communications clerk with the Denver Police Department, and had applied for an entry-level position as a police officer. Younger's job as a communications clerk and the job she sought as a police officer are governed by separate personnel systems within the City and County of Denver. One system, the Career Service Authority, covers Younger's position as a communications clerk, which is essentially a clerical position. The second personnel system, the Civil Service Commission, manages only employees in classified service, namely, police officers and firefighters.
To be considered for employment as a police officer, all applicants are required to pass a physical agility test, as well as a written test, a medical examination, a background check, and a polygraph examination. Successful completion of all of these tests does not, however, guarantee employment.
Younger passed the requisite written examination, and on September 8, 1986, which was Younger's regularly scheduled day off from work, she injured her knee while taking the physical agility test. The test required Younger to jump over a piece of duct tape on the floor from a squat position. While performing the exercise, Younger's foot caught on a piece of tape that was sticking up from the floor. She subsequently sustained an injury to her right knee, which required surgery and resulted in the loss of time and benefits from her employment.
Thereafter, Younger applied for workers' compensation benefits, which were denied. The administrative law judge (ALJ) found that Younger's job as a communications clerk within the Career Service Authority was "unrelated to and separate from the position she sought as a police officer," and rejected Younger's claim that her injury was compensable because it was incurred while she was pursuing a promotional opportunity. Thus, the ALJ concluded that Younger's injury during the pre-employment physical agility test did not arise out of and in the course of her employment as a communications clerk. The ALJ further concluded that, as an applicant for employment as a police officer, Younger was not an employee as defined under section 8-41-106(1)(a)(I)(A), 3B C.R.S. (1986), and was therefore not entitled to benefits.
The Industrial Claim Appeals Panel (Panel) affirmed the ALJ's order, and the court of appeals subsequently affirmed the final order of the Panel. Younger now seeks review of the court of appeals opinion.
II.
On appeal, Younger asserts two arguments: (1) that her status as an employee of the Denver Police Department entitled her to workers' compensation benefits during her tryout for another position within the Department; and (2) that, as a job applicant who was injured while performing a physical agility test required by a prospective employer, she is covered by the Workers' Compensation Act. We will address these issues in the order presented, keeping in mind that, as the claimant, Younger has the burden of establishing her right to benefits. See Orr v. Industrial Comm'n, 716 P.2d 1106, 1108 (Colo. 1986).
A.
We first consider whether Younger, as a communications clerk for the Denver Police Department, was entitled to workers' compensation benefits for an injury sustained
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