Govt hikes compensation for workers

The Workmens Compensation (Amendment) Bill,passed by the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday,has been cleared by the Lok Sabha on November 25.

The amendments raise the monetary compensation in the event of death from Rs 80,000 to Rs 1.2 lakh. In cases of permanent disability,the compensation has been increased from Rs 90,000 to Rs 1.4 lakh. The money for performing funeral has been doubled from Rs 2,500 to Rs 5,000.

The amendments also remove or relax several restrictive clauses in the earlier law. For example,the definition of dangerous industries has been redefined,clerical staff have also been included within the ambit of this law,and the restriction of the application of this law to companies with at least 20 employees has been done away with. The employees would also be eligible for reimbursement of treatment for injuries happening during the course of their work. And to make it gender neutral,the title of the law has also been amended to Employee Compensation Act.

Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge said the new law would also make it obligatory on the compensation commissioners to decide on a claim within three months of an application being filed. The amendments were welcomed by all members cutting across party lines though almost all of them also wanted the government to increase the compensation amount even further.