Things you need to know about Worker’s Compensation
Worker's Compensation differs from country to country. Some countries have categorized worker's compensation in that this type of compensation is paid out to a certain category of workers, for example those who work in dangerous fields of employment, like factories manufacturing electrical cables and even handling firearms. Another example isMississippi, where you need to employ more than five persons for them to be liable for workers' compensation and it is not compulsory that workers' compensation be taken out for a workforce of less than five.
In Sri Lanka,Workmen's Compensationcomes under an ordinance that states "To provide for the payment of compensation to workmen who are injured in the course of their employment". It is a compulsory statute that an employer should take out worker's compensation insurance to cover its working staff be it in a factory, office, mine, road development, tea plantation etc. One might never know when an injury could be caused whilst on duty and being covered by this very important insurance statute is indeed a benefit for the workers concerned. Just as much as an employer, one has to be prepared to face work related injuries, the employees too should be aware of their entitlements under the Worker's Compensation Act.
It is in a broad sense that an employer should have a accident free and healthy workplace for its workers. However much there may be "spick and span" work environments in place, there may come an incident and time where a worker may be injured whilst on duty and it is the employer's duty to see that the worker is compensated depending on the injuries caused.
This statute in many countries differ in title but carry the same meaning. In some countries it is called "Workmens' Compensation". In others it is "Worker's Compensation". However, the base of it carries the same overall insurance coverage for workers who meet with accidents whilst on duty.
What is appraised is the ability of an injured employee's capacity to get back to work contains the examination of:-
It must be noted that injuries can be classified into two categories
Exact: Injury to one or more parts of the body, which may occur in an employee fracturing a bone or falling from a ladder or any other height.
Collective: An employee who has been subject to noise levels and having lost his or her hearing, which from time to time may change in decibel levels.
Procedures to be adopted when an employee/worker meets with an accident in the work place or when on official duty outside the workplace.
Depending on your country's emergency toll number, you need to dial it pronto (no sooner the worker/employee meets with the accident). Internal first aid should be administered by trained personnel, until professional medical help arrives).
Injuries can vary as follows:-
Depending on the nature of the injury which can lead to complications, medical assistance should be sort immediately.
The company's Human Resource Division should have a specific form where the entire history of the accident and injury is noted and the Head of Human Resource informed. Any first aid carried out should be entered in the form, so that once the employee or worker is hospitalized the hospital staff would be aware of what treatment has been administered on the patient.
If you have a Occupational and Safety Department, forward a copy of the form to the said Department for purposes of record.
Investigation of the Accident is carried out by the Risk Management Division or the Human Resource Division, where a series of interviews with the injured worker, witnesses to the injury, examining the injured employee's work area, whether safety measures were followed properly, taking corrective action etc.
Regular contact with the injured worker/employee until he returns to work.
Getting back to work is the most important part of all. the injured employee should be certified fit by specialized medical practitioners that he could get back to work.
The type of benefits under the Workmens' Compensation Act in Sri Lanka is specified by law and in most countries comes under the Department of Labour, which department comes directly under the Ministry of Labour. In many Departments of Labour, there is a specific Department called the Occupational Safety and Health Division, which handles such accidents and claims.
The Occupational Safety and Health Division contacts the injured employee/worker and ascertains the extent of injury prior to disbursing the claim. At times the employee is subject to the examination by a special medical board of Doctors and Specialists, prior to the claim being paid out.
If the claim is delayed, the employee can use his own sick leave, vacation leave or the company may in such circumstances grant special leave for the employee to recuperate prior to the claim being paid out.
If once the employee returns to work, the nature of his accident, prevents him from performing his duties in a proper manner, the company should put him or her on less strenuous work, modified work or reduced working hours. Modified work could be a desk job, entering of data etc. Reduced working hours could be that the employee works only 4 hours of his usual 8 hour period. This really depends on the company concerned and the rules and regulations it adopts.
If the employee is permanently disabled then the company will have to pay out the claim in whole as per insurance claims and any other payments due to the employee such as gratuity, employees' provident fund and employees' trust fund claims.
Once the claim has been approved, it is paid out either by cheque or remitted direct to the employee's bank account.
The return to work by the employee should be carried out with a full clearance from the medical team treating the employee and the employee should be welcomed into the fold of the company, as it would be in a family reunion. This makes the employee feel accepted and wanted no matter what the injury had been.
It is indeed a law that the company adopts safety measures in working environments. Training programmes for employees on safety measures, handling of equipment and machinery. I would like to share an example of an accident in a company I worked for 1999. This Company was a Cable Manufacturing Company in Sri Lanka (one of the largest). There were three "compressor" that were in operation and a worker without thinking of the gravity of it, sat on one compressor, while attending to the other. The one he was seated on heated and blew the employee off the compressor, hitting his head on the iron bar above which was about 6 -8 feet above. The employee was rushed to Hospital and had to spend about 1 month in hospital as his skull had cracked and had to be carefully attended to. In such an instance, what I felt was that the worker did not take enough care and attention to the norms of safety. However, the Company considering the nature of the illness, paid out workmen's compensation out to the worker.
