Download - Employee Compensation Act, 1923
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
1/17
EMPLOYEESCOMPENSATION ACT
1923 (ECA)
Till January 2010 it was known as the
Workmens Compensation Act.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
2/17
Introduction to the Act
The Workmens Compensation Act, 1923 is one of the
earliest labor welfare and social security legislation
enacted in India.
It recognizes the fact that if a workman is a victim of
accident or an occupational disease in course of his
employment, he needs to be compensated.
The Act does not apply to those workers who are
insured under the Employees State Insurance Act
1948.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
3/17
An insured person or his dependents shall not be
entitled to receive or recover whether from the employer
of the insured person or from any other person any
compensation or damages under the Workmens
Compensation act 1923 or any other law for the timebeing in force or otherwise in respect of an employment
injury sustained by the insured person as an employee
under this Act.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
4/17
Objectives of the Act
Provide workmen and/or their dependents some relief or
to consider compensation payable by an employer to his
workmen in case of accidents arising out of and in the
course of employment and causing either death or
disablement of workmen as a measure of relief and socialsecurity.
Provide for payment by certain classes of employers to
their workmen compensation for injury by accident.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
5/17
To enable a workmen to get compensation irrespective
of his negligence.
It lays down the various amounts payable in case of anaccident, depending upon the type and extent of injury.
The employer now knows the amount of compensation
he has to pay and is saved of many uncertainties to
which he was subject before the Act came into force.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
6/17
Features of the Act
1) Act provides for cheaper and quicker mode of disposalof disputes through special proceedings than possibleunder Civil Laws.
2) Act provides compensation to workmen for injurycaused by accident and occupational disease arising outof and in the course of employment.
3) The Act is applicable to apprentices also.
4) Procedure for settlement of claim is throughCommissioner
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
7/17
Workmens Compensation
Employers Liability for Compensation
1) For personal injury caused to him by accident, and
2) For any occupational disease contracted by him.
1) Personal Injury: Personal injury includes:
i) Must have been caused during the course of his
employment;
ii) Must have been caused by accident arising out of hisemployment.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
8/17
So the injury should be caused by accident by some
mishap, unexpected or unforeseen.
The personal injury caused to the worker must have
resulted in total or partial disablement of the workman
for a period exceeding 3 days or it must have resulted in
the death of the worker.
The injury should not have been caused by accident
which is directly attributable to:
i) The workman having been under the influence of drink or
drugs at the time of the accident;
ii) Willful disregard of instruction relating to safety
precautions given by the employer; and/or
iii) The willful disregard of the usage of the safety device or
safety guard provided for the purpose of securing safety
of the workman by the employer
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
9/17
2) Occupational Disease
Act also recognizes that the workman employed in
certain types of industries of occupation risk exposure to
certain occupational disease peculiar to that
employment.
i) An injury by accident within the meaning of the Act and
compensation is payable to the workman who
contracts such disease;
ii) The types of employment which exposes the workman
to occupational disease as well as the list of
occupational diseases are contained in Schedule III of
the Act.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
10/17
Amount of Compensation
The amount of compensation payable to a workman
depends on:
1) The nature of the injury caused by accident.
2) The monthly wages of the workman concerned, and3) The relevant factor for working out lump-sum equivalent
of compensation amount.
There is no distinction between an adult and a minorworker with respect to the amount of compensation
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
11/17
Compensation for
1) Death;
2) Permanent total disablement;
3) Permanent partial disablement; and
4) Temporary disablement total or partial.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
12/17
(a) Compensation for Death: where death results an
amount equal to fifty per cent of the monthly wages
of the deceased workman multiplied by the relevant
factor; or an amount of fifty thousand rupees,
whichever is more.
(b) Compensation for Permanent Total Disablement
:Where permanent total disablement results form an
injury, the amount of compensation payable shall beequal to 60 percent of the monthly wages of the injured
workman multiplied by the relevant factor, or Rs. 90,000,
whichever is more
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
13/17
( C ) Compensation for Permanent Partial Disablement:
(I ) If the loss of earning capacity caused by an injury
specified in Schedule is 30 percent, the amount of
compensation shall be 30 percent of compensation
payable in case of permanent total disablement.
ii) In the case of an injury not specified in Schedule such
percentage of the compensation payable in the case of
permanent total disablement as is proportionate to the
loss of earning capacity (as assessed by the qualifiedmedical practitioner) permanently caused by the injury.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
14/17
( d)Compensation for Temporary Disablement: A half
monthly payment of the sum whether total or partial
results equivalent to 25% of monthly wages of the from
the injury workman to be paid in the manner prescribed.
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
15/17
General principles of the Act
There must be a casual connection between the injury
and the accident and the work done in the course of
employment;
The onus is upon the applicant to show that it was the
work and the resulting strain which contributed to or
aggravated the injury;
It is not necessary that the workman must be actually
working at the time of his death or that death must occur
while he was working or had just ceased to work; and
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
16/17
Compensation payable even if
workman was careless
Compensation is payable even if it is found that the
employee did not take proper precautions.
An employee is not entitled to get compensation only if
(a) he was drunk or had taken drugs (b) he willfully disobeyed orders in respect of safety
(c) he willfully removed safety guards of machines.
However, compensation cannot be denied on the ground
that workman was negligent or careless
-
7/27/2019 Employee Compensation Act, 1923
17/17
Payment of compensation only
through Commissioner
A Commissioner for Workmens Compensation is
appointed by Government.
The compensation must be paid only through the
Commissioner in case of death or total disablement.
Any lump sum payment to workman under the Act must
be made only through Commissioner.
Direct payment to workman or his dependents is not
recognized at all as compensation.