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[W] Webb Wheel Products12/30/2004
David Joshua Hanvey sued Webb Wheel Products, Inc., alleging that Webb Wheel had discharged him in retaliation for his filing a claim for workers' compensation benefits. After a trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of Hanvey, awarding $80,000 in compensatory damages and $400,000 in punitive damages. The trial court entered a judgment on the jury's verdict. After the trial court denied Webb Wheel's postjudgment motion, Webb Wheel appealed. We affirm in part and reverse in part.
I. Factual Background and Procedural History
Webb Wheel manufactures wheels, wheel hubs, brake drums, and disk-brake rotors for large trucks and trailers. It has three manufacturing plants--two in Cullman and one in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Webb Wheel hired David Joshua Hanvey on September 19, 1999, as a production operator working on a drill press at its Plant #1 in Cullman. Webb Wheel employs approximately 200 people at Plant #1.
On July 31, 2000, Hanvey suffered an on-the-job injury to his back. He reported the injury to his supervisor, Phillip Hill, and saw Webb Wheel's authorized physician, Dr. Dan Williams, who advised him not to work for one week. After a week's absence, Hanvey returned to work at his drill-press job . After about three hours, however, his back was hurting so badly that he reported it to Hill and returned to Dr. Williams, who recommended an MRI and a consultation with a neurosurgeon.
Webb Wheel self-insures its workers' compensation claims. Webb Wheel hired Alternative Insurance Resources ("AIR") to administer the paperwork required for the claims, but any claims were paid directly by Webb Wheel, rather than by an insurance company. Lynn Alward, Webb Wheel's personnel manager, was responsible for handling the workers' compensation claims for the company and was the person with whom injured employees had contact.
Hanvey alleges that, after his second visit to Dr. Williams, Alward told him that he could not work unless Dr. Williams released him with no restrictions. Alward consulted with Diane Ryan, the adjustor at AIR who administered workers' compensation claims for Webb Wheel, and Ryan telephoned Dr. Williams to tell him that an MRI would be authorized and that a neurological consultation could be discussed after the MRI results were received. Hanvey underwent an MRI, which revealed three bulging discs but was otherwise reported as an "essentially negative study." Webb Wheel then transferred Hanvey to another physician, who prescribed physical therapy. Hanvey was unable to work for approximately two and one-half months.
Hanvey testified that during the period in which he was temporarily disabled, he had problems receiving his workers' compensation benefits in a timely fashion. He said his checks were frequently late and sometimes for the wrong amount and that he had difficulty getting reimbursed for certain medical expenses. Because of these problems, Hanvey said, he asked Alward to allow him to pick his checks up at the plant, but she told him that the checks had to be mailed. Alward testified that Webb Wheel's controller, Granville Hooper, told her it was against company policy for an employee to pick up his checks for workers' compensation benefits. Hooper testified, however, that he recalled no such conversation with Alward and that it would have been fine for Hanvey to pick up his checks. Hanvey testified that after his injury , Alward's attitude toward him changed from being kind and helpful to being bitter and unhelpful.
After he was fitted with a back brace, Hanvey returned to work on October 18, 2000. He reported to Hill, who informed him that he would be working in a different department under a different super
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