Section 1.
Section two of Act Numbered Three thousand four hundred and
twenty-eight as amended by section one of Act Numbered Three thousand
eight hundred and twelve is hereby further amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 2.
Grounds for compensation. — When an employee suffers personal injury
from any accident arising out of and in the course of his employment,
or contracts tuberculosis or other illness directly caused by such
employment, or either aggravated by or the result of the nature of such
employment, his employer shall pay compensation in the sums and to the
person hereinafter specified. The right to compensation as provided in
this Act shall not be defeated or impaired on the ground that the
death, injury or disease was due to the negligence of a fellow servant
or employee, without prejudice to the right of the employer to proceed
against the negligent party."
Sec. 2. Section three of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight as amended by section two of Act
Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve is hereby further
amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 3.
Applicable to Government. — This Act shall also be applicable to
mounted messengers in the service of the National Government and all
its political subdivisions and to the employees and laborers employed
in public works and in the industrial concerns of the Government and to
all other persons performing manual labor in the service of the
National Government and its political subdivisions and
instrumentalities: Provided, however, That laborers and employees
insured with the Government Service Insurance System, and their
dependents when entitled to the benefits of the said Insurance System
shall, in addition to the same be entitled to the benefits granted by
this Act."
Sec. 3. Section four of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 4.
Injuries not covered. — Compensation shall not be allowed for injuries
caused: (1) by the voluntary intent of the employee to inflict such
injury upon himself or another person; (2) by drunkenness on the part
of the laborer who had the accident; and (3) by notorious negligence of
the same."
Sec. 4. A new section, four-A, is added to Act
Numbered Three thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, to read:
"Sec. 4-A.
Right to additional compensation. — In case of the employee's death,
injury or sickness due to the failure of the employer to comply with
any law, or with any order, rule or regulation of the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner or the Industrial Safety Bureau, or should
the employer violate the provisions of Act Numbered Three thousand
seventy-one or fail to install and maintain safety appliances, or take
other precautions for the prevention of accident or occupational
disease, he shall be liable to pay an additional compensation equal to
fifty per centum of the compensation fixed in this Act."
Sec. 5. Section five of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 5.
Exclusive right to compensation. — The rights and remedies granted by
this Act to an employee by reason of a personal injury entitling him to
compensation shall exclude all other rights and remedies accruing to
the employee, his personal representatives, dependents or nearest of
kin against the employer under the Civil Code and other laws, because
of said injury.
"Employers contracting laborers in the Philippine Islands for work
outside the same shall stipulate with such laborers that the remedies
prescribed by this Act shall apply to injuries received outside the
Islands through accidents happening in and during the performance of
the duties of the employment. Such stipulation shall not prejudice the
right of the laborers to the benefits of the Workmen's Compensation Law
of the place where the accident occurs, should such law be more
favorable to them."
Sec. 6. A new section, 7-A, is added to Act
Numbered Three thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, to read:
"Sec. 7-A.
Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, appointment. — There is hereby
created in the Department of Labor the Office of the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner, hereafter designated the Commissioner, who
shall be assisted by a Deputy Workmen's Compensation Commissioner. The
Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner shall be appointed by the
President of the Philippines with the consent of the Commission on
Appointments and shall receive compensation at the rate of eight
thousand four hundred pesos and seven thousand and two hundred pesos
per annum, respectively.
"Upon the organization of the Office of the Commissioner the existing
Workmen's Compensation Division in the Bureau of Labor shall be
abolished, and all its files, records, equipment, appropriation, and
all the officials and employees of said division shall thereupon be
placed under control and management of the Commissioner."
Sec. 7. Section eight of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section four of
Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve and by section two
of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and ten, is hereby amended
further to read as follows:
"Sec. 8.
Death benefit. — If the disease contracted or injury received by the
employee as provided in section two hereof causes his death within two
years from the date of such injury or sickness, the employer shall pay
the compensation to the persons entitled thereto, and in case there
shall be none, he shall pay to the person representing the deceased
employee the burial expenses not to exceed two hundred pesos, and shall
also pay to or for the following persons, in the order of priority and
during the periods hereinafter set forth, a weekly compensation
equivalent to the following percentages of the average weekly wages of
the employee, as determined in section nineteen of this Act:
"(a) To the dependent widow or widower, in case there
are no dependent children, forty-five per centum.
"(b) To the dependent widow or widower in case there
are one or two dependent children, fifty per centum, and if there are
three or more dependent children, sixty per centum. The compensation to
the widow or widower and of the dependent children, and the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner may from time to time adjust the compensation
between them in the most equitable manner possible.
"(c) If there is no dependent widow or widower, but a
dependent child or children, such child or children shall be paid forty
per centum, with ten per centum additional for each child in excess of
two, up to a maximum of fifty per centum, which shall be distributed in
equal shares among the children if there be more than one.
"(d) If there are no dependent widow, widower or
children, but there is a dependent father and mother, forty per centum
to the father or mother if totally dependent, or twenty-five per centum
if partly dependent, and if both parents are dependent, each shall be
paid one-half of such compensation. If there is no parent, but
dependent grandparents, the same compensation shall be paid as to a
father or mother.
"(e) If there are no dependent widow, widower, child,
parent, or grandparent, but there is a dependent grandchild, brother or
sister or two or more such, then twenty-five per centum shall be paid
for one dependent and five per centum additional for each additional
dependent, up to a maximum of forty per centum, which shall be
distributed share and share alike among the dependents if there be more
than one.
"(f) If there are no legal dependents, the employer
shall pay the amount of one thousand pesos to the Workmen's
Compensation Fund: Provided, That the said Commissioner shall have
direct control and supervision over such funds, subject to general
auditing requirements, which shall be spent for the rehabilitation of
crippled men in industry.
"When several persons are entitled to compensation and there is
disagreement concerning the share of the compensation each should
receive, the Workmen's Compensation Commission shall act as referee and
designate the share to be allotted to each dependent.
Sec. 8. Section eleven of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Section 11. Scope of certain words. — The words
"son", "daughter", or "children", as used in this Act, shall include
stepchildren, adopted children, and illegitimate children acknowledged
by and dependent upon the deceased before the injury was contracted;
but they shall not include married persons, unless the same be
dependents, for any reason provided for in law. The words "brother" or
"sister" include stepbrothers or stepsisters, halfbrothers or
halfsisters, and brothers or sisters by adoption; but it does not
include married brothers or married sisters, unless the same are
dependents for any reason provided for in law. The words "grandson",
"granddaughter", or "grandchild" include children of adopted children
and children of stepchildren; but they do not include stepchildren of
children, nor stepchildren of stepchildren, nor stepchildren of adopted
children, nor married grandchildren, unless the same be dependents in
accordance with the law. The word "parents" includes stepfathers and
stepmothers and parents by adoption. The word "grandfathers",
"grandmothers" or "grandparents" include the parents of parents by
adoption; but they do not include parents of step-parents, step-parents
of parents, nor step-parents of step-parents."
Sec. 9. Section twelve of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Section 12.
Sundry provisions regarding death benefits. — In computing death
benefits, the average weekly wages of the deceased employee shall not
be reckoned at more than fifty pesos nor less that ten pesos; but the
total weekly compensation shall not in any case exceed the average
weekly wages computed in accordance with section nineteen of this Act,
nor shall the compensation paid in any case exceed in its aggregate the
sum of four thousand pesos.
"The bona fide payment of a death compensation by an employer to a
dependent entitled thereto in the second place after another dependent
or dependents shall protect and exonerate the employer, unless and
until the dependent or dependents having priority right shall notify
him of his or their claim.
"In the event of death occurring after a period of total or partial
disability, the period of disability shall be deducted from the
respective total periods established in section ten of this Act.
"The compensation of a demented person shall be paid to the guardian of
such person."
Section 10. Section thirteen of Act Numbered Three
thousand for hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section five of
Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve and section three
of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and ten, is further amended to
read as follows:
"Section 13.
Medical attendance. — Immediately after an employee has suffered as
injury or contracted sickness and during the subsequent period of
disability, the employer shall provide the employee with such medical,
surgical, and hospital services and supplies as the nature of the
injury or sickness may require.
"The pecuniary liability of the employer for the necessary medical,
surgical, and hospital services and supplies shall be limited to the
amount ordinarily paid in the community for such treatment of an
injured person of the same standard of living if the treatment had to
be paid for by the injured person himself.
"In case the employer cannot furnish medical, surgical, and hospital
services and supplies promptly, the injured employee may acquire the
same at the expense of the employer.
"If it is shown before the Commissioner that the injured employee
voluntarily refused to accept the services of a competent physician or
surgeon or voluntarily rejected the medical, surgical, and hospital
services and supplies provided, by the employer, or voluntarily
obstructed the physician or surgeon or the medical, surgical or
hospital services, such refusal on the part of the employee shall be
construed as a waiver of all or part of his rights to the medical,
surgical, and hospital services paid for by the employer, and in this
case the employer shall be liable only for the injury or for the
disability of any nature that would have ensued if the injured man had
accepted the medical, surgical, and hospital services and supplies
tendered by the employer: Provided, however, That the refusal as well
as the kind of disability that would have been the result of the injury
if the injured person had accepted such services, shall be set forth in
an affidavit made within twenty-four hours after such refusal by the
physician called to attend the injured person."
Section 11. Section fourteen of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section four of
Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and ten, is further amended to
read as follows:
"Section 14.
Total disability. — It case the injury or sickness causes total
disability for labor, the employer, during such disability but
exclusive of the first three days shall pay to the injured employee a
weekly compensation equivalent to sixty per centum of his average
weekly wages; but not more than thirty-five pesos nor less than ten
pesos per week, except in the case provided for in the next following
paragraph. Such weekly payments shall in no case continue after the
disability has ceased, nor shall they extend over more than two hundred
and eight weeks, nor shall the aggregate sum paid as compensation
exceed in any case four thousand pesos. But no award of permanent
disability shall take effect until after two weeks have elapsed from
the date of injury.
"In the case of an employee whose average weekly wages are less than
ten pesos per week, the weekly compensation shall be the entire amount
of such average weekly wages; but if the disability is permanent, the
compensation shall be ten pesos in such case. In the event that the
total disability, begins after a period of partial disability, the
latter shall be deducted from said total period of two hundred and
eight weeks."
Section 12. Section sixteen of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section six of
Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve and by section
five of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and ten, is hereby
further amended to read as follows:
"Section 16.
Partial disability. — In case the injury or sickness causes partial
disability for labor, the employer, during such disability and except
as hereinafter provided, shall pay to the injured or sick employee for
a period of not to exceed two hundred and eight weeks, beginning with
the first day of disability, a weekly compensation equal to fifty per
centum of the difference between his average weekly wages before the
accident and the weekly wages which he could probably earn thereafter;
but not more than eighteen pesos per week. The weekly payments shall
not in any case continue after the disability has ceased, and in case
partial disability sets in after a period a total disability, such
period of total disability, shall be deducted from the total period of
two hundred and eight weeks and the amount of the compensation paid
shall not in any case be in excess of the total sum of four thousand
pesos. No award for disability shall be made before, a lapse of two
weeks counted from the date of the injury."
Section 13. Section eighteen of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Section 18.
Amputation. — Amputation between elbow and wrist shall be considered as
equivalent to the loss of a hand. Amputation between knee and ankle
shall be considered as a loss of a foot. Amputation at or above the
elbow shall be considered as equivalent to the loss of an arm.
Amputation at or above the knee shall be considered as equivalent to
the loss of a leg.
"Compensation for the injuries above specified shall exclude all other
compensation except the benefits provided for in sections thirteen,
fourteen, and fifteen.
"In case of an injury producing a serious disfigurement of the face or
head, the Commissioner may, at the request of an interested party,
determine and award such compensation as may seem fair and proper in
view of the nature of the disfigurement, but which shall not exceed
four thousand pesos.
"In all other cases of this kind of disability not mentioned in other
sections of this Act, the compensation shall be fifty per centum of the
difference between the average weekly wages of the injured person and
his subsequent earning capacity in the same or some other employment,
payable while the partial disability lasts; but subject to
reconsideration of the degree of impairment by the Commissioner at the
request of an interested party: Provided, however, That the weekly
payments shall in no case be continued for a period longer than two
hundred and eight weeks.
"The total compensation prescribed in this and the next preceding
section and the total compensation prescribed in sections fourteen and
fifteen of this Act shall, together, not exceed the sum of four
thousand pesos: Provided, however, That after the payment has been made
for the period specified by the Act in each case, the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner may from time to time cause the examination
of the condition of the disabled laborer, with a view to extending, if
necessary, the period of compensation which shall not, however, exceed
the said amount of four thousand pesos.
Section 14. Section twenty of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 20.
Voluntary payments. — Payments made by the employer or insurer to the
injured laborer during the period of his disability or to his
dependents, which under the provisions hereof were not due or payable
when they were made, shall, upon being duly established, by agreement
between the parties concerned, a certified copy of which shall be sent
to the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, or subject to the decision
of the Commissioner, be deducted from the sum to be paid as
compensation: Provided, That in case of disability, the deduction shall
be made by reducing the period of time during which the compensation is
to be paid, and not by reducing the weekly payment to be made in
accordance with sections fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen of
this Act."
Section 15. Section twenty-one of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 21.
Periodical payments. — Upon agreement by the parties concerned, subject
to the approval of the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, the
compensation may be paid monthly or semi-monthly instead of weekly."
Section 16. Section twenty-two of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight as amended by section eight of
Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve, is hereby further
amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 22.
Payments in a lump sum. — Whenever the Commissioner considers it most
advantageous and convenient, the liability of the employer as regards
the compensation may be discharged totally or in part by payment in a
lump sum or sums as may be the case, under the condition that if the
sum or sums to be paid are less than that fixed by the law, the
reduction shall not be more than eight per centum: Provided, however,
That any agreement or contract made for this purpose between the
parties shall not be valid unless it be in conformity with the
provisions of this section in so far as the amount of compensation is
concerned, and be made in the form of a public document acknowledged
before the justice of the peace of the locality and attested by two
witnesses, one of whom shall be the municipal treasurer or the person
acting in his stead if the agreement in entered into outside the City
of Manila, subject to the approval of the Workmen's Compensation
Commissioner, and if in the City of Manila, before the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner or any of his authorized representative.
Before the acknowledgment of the instrument, the justice of the peace
shall fully inform the injured laborer or dependent person or persons
executing the instrument in his stead, of all their rights and
privileges under this Act reading and translating to them into the
vernacular dialect they know in case they do not understand English or
Spanish, the provisions of this Act establishing the amounts and period
of compensation and other privileges to which they are entitled by
reason of the accident, and shall certify in the acknowledgment clause
that all these requisites have been complied with. The expenses of the
acknowledgment of the contract shall be borne by the employer.
"Any failure on the part of the employer to comply with his obligation
to pay any of the sums due to the injured laborer or his dependents in
accordance with this Act, shall entitle the beneficiary to claim the
entire balance of the compensation at one time."
Section 17. Section twenty-nine of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight as amended by section nine of
Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve is hereby further
amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 29.
Agreement on compensation. — In case the employer and injured laborer
or the dependents entitled to compensation arrive at an agreement
concerning the compensation provided for by this Act, such agreement in
order to be valid, shall provide, at least, the same amount of
compensation as that prescribed by this Act and must be approved by the
Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, or any of his authorized
representatives: Provided, however, That the employer shall be exempt
from all liability under this Act as soon as the compensation has been
paid in accordance with this section, saving the provisions of section
six of this Act."
Section 18. Section thirty-one of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight as amended by section ten of Act
Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve is hereby further
amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 31.
Intervention of the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner. — In case a
laborer who suffers an accident or contracts an illness comprised
within the provisions of section two of this Act, or his dependents,
contracts the services of a lawyer or other persons to help him or
direct him in his claim for compensation against his employer before
the office of the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, the fees of said
lawyer or person shall not be more than five per cent of the total sum
which said injured or sick laborer or his dependent in case of his
death shall receive by way of compensation; but if his services shall
take place in an appealed case, his fees shall not be in excess of ten
per centum of said sum, and any person who, in violation of this
proviso, makes an excessive charge, shall be punished by a fine of not
more than two hundred pesos."
Section 19. Section thirty-two of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is hereby repealed.
Sec. 20. Section thirty-six of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight is amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 36.
Cooperation of other officials. — In connection with his duties, the
Workmen's Compensation Commissioner may, if necessary, require the
cooperation of any city or provincial fiscal, city or provincial health
officer; any justice of the peace or any other national, provincial or
municipal official in order to secure proper compliance with this Act
or any part thereof."
Sec. 21. Section thirty-seven of Act Numbered
Three thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section
eleven of Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve, is
hereby further amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 37.
Notice of accidents by employer. — Each employer shall hereafter keep a
record of all injuries, whether fatal, or not, received by his
employees in the course of their employment, when the same come to his
knowledge or attention. As soon as possible after the occurrence of an
injury resulting in absence from work for a day or more, the employer
shall give written notice thereof to the Workmen's Compensation
Commissioner on blank forms specially prepared by said Commissioner for
which the employer shall make requisition in due time, or in case of
necessity or emergency, or for lack of forms, on any other paper,
containing the information hereinafter prescribed.
"The notice shall set forth the style and nature of the business of the
employer, the location of the establishment, the name, age, sex, wages,
and occupation of the injured employee, the date and hour of the
accident resulting in the injury, the nature and cause of the injury,
whether liability is admitted or controverted, and such other
information as may be required by the Workmen's Compensation
Commissioner.
"Not later than sixty days after the termination of the disability of
the injured employee, the employer or other person liable for the
payment of the compensation provided for in this Act shall file with
the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner a statement of the total
payments made or to be made for compensation and for medical services
to the injured person.
"Any employer refusing or neglecting to give the notice or information
required by this section shall be punished by a fine of not more than
two hundred fifty pesos for each offense: Provided, That in the case of
firms or corporations, the president, directors or managers thereof,
shall be criminally liable for each violation, or in default thereof,
the person who directly or indirectly take their place in the
management, direction or administration of the business."
Sec. 22. Section thirty-nine of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight, as amended by section thirteen
of Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve and by section
nine of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and ten, is hereby
amended further to read as follows:
"Sec. 39.
Definition of various words. — In this Act, unless the context
indicates otherwise, the definition of various words used therein shall
be as follows:
"(a) 'Employer' includes every person or association
of persons, incorporated or not, public or private, and the legal
representative of the deceased employer. It includes the owner or
lessee of a factory or establishment or place of work or any other
person who is virtually the owner or manager of the business carried on
in the establishment or place of work but who, for the reason that
there is an independent contractor in the same, or for any other
reason, is not the direct employer of laborers employed there.
"(b) 'Laborer' is used as a synonym of 'Employee' and
means every person who has entered the employment of, or works under a
service or apprenticeship contract for an employer. It does not include
a person whose employment is purely casual and is not for the purposes
of the occupation or business of the employer. Any reference to the
person dependent on him, as defined in this Act, if the context so
requires, or, if the employee is a minor or incapacitated, to his
guardian or nearest of kin.
"(c) 'Injury' or 'personal injuries' includes
sickness, 'injury' or 'personal injuries' or 'sickness' includes death
produced by the injury or sickness.
"(d) 'Industrial employment' in case of private
employers includes all employment or work at a trade, occupation or
profession exercised by an employer for the purpose of gain, except
domestic service.
"(e) 'Public employment' signifies employment in the
service of the National Government of the government of any province,
municipality or other political subdivision of the Islands. It does not
include employment as public officer elected by the popular vote nor
persons paid more than four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum.
"(f) 'Partial disability', diminished capacity for
securing employment due to disfigurement produced by an injury, can be
considered as partial disability.
"(g) 'Wages' includes the commercial value of the
board and lodging, subsistence, fuel and other amounts which the
employee receives from the employer as part of his compensation.
"(h) A word in the singular shall also imply to the
plural and vice versa, and one in the masculine gender shall also apply
to the feminine."
Sec. 23. Section forty-two of Act Numbered Three
thousand four hundred and twenty-eight as amended by section fourteen
of Act Numbered Three thousand eight hundred and twelve is hereby
amended further to read as follows:
"Sec. 42.
Law applicable to small industries. — All claims for compensation by
reason of an accident in an enterprise, industry, or business carried
on or in a trade, occupation or profession exercised by an employer for
the purpose of gain, whose capital amounts to less than ten thousand
pesos and is not hazardous or deleterious to employees, shall be
governed by the provisions of Act Numbered Eighteen hundred and
seventy-four and its amendments: Provided, however, That the following
enterprises or establishments shall be among those considered hazardous
or deleterious to employees:
"(1) Any business for the transportation of persons
or goods, or both;
"(2) Any factory, establishment, or shop where
machinery is used;
"(3) Any factory, establishment, or shop, or shop
where the employee is exposed to dust or other particles or matter,
fumes, cases, and other chemical substances;
"(4) Plants or establishments for the making or
manufacture of fireworks, dynamite, munitions, and similar things or
articles;
"(5) Employment for circus, boxing, football,
basketball, wrestling, racing, and similar sports; and
"(6) Fishing, lumbering, and mining."
Sec. 24. Section s forty-three to fifty-five are
hereby added to the Act to read as follows:
"Sec. 43.
Presumption. — In any proceeding for the enforcement of the claim for
compensation under this Act, it shall be presumed in the absence of
substantial evidence to the contrary —
"1. That the claim comes within the provisions of
this Act;
"2. That sufficient notice thereof was given;
"3. That the injury was not occasioned by the willful
intention of the injured employee to bring about the injury or death of
himself or of another;
"4. That the injury did not result solely from the
intoxication of the injured employee while on duty; and
"5. That the contents of verified medical and
surgical reports introduced in evidence by claimants for compensation
are correct.
"Sec. 44. Compensation, how payable. — The
compensation herein provided for shall be paid periodically and
promptly in like manner as wages, and as it accrues, and directly to
the persons entitled thereto without the necessity of a formal award by
the Commissioner, except in those cases in which the right to
compensation is controverted by the employer. If the employer or
insurance carrier does not controvert the injured workmen's right to
compensation, such employer or insurance carrier shall, either on or
before the fourteenth day after disability or within five days after
the employer first has knowledge of the accident, begin paying
compensation and shall immediately notify the Commissioner in
accordance with a form to be prescribed by him, that the payment of
compensation has begun, accompanied by the further statement that the
employer or insurance carrier, as the case may be, will notify the
Commissioner when the payment or compensation has been stopped, and
immediately upon the stoppage or suspension or payment of compensation
the employer or insurance carrier shall notify the Commissioner of such
act on a form to be inscribed by him. After the first payment of
compensation has been made, subsequent payments shall be made weekly
thereafter; but the Commissioner may determine that any payments may be
made monthly or at any other period, as he may deem advisable.
"In case the employer decides to controvert the right to compensation,
he shall, either on or before the fourteenth day of disability or
within ten days after he has knowledge of the alleged accident, file a
notice with the Commissioner, on a form prescribed by him, that
compensation is not being paid, giving the name of the claimant, name
of the employer, date of the accident and the reason why compensation
is not being paid. Failure on the part of the employer or the insurance
carrier to comply with this requirement shall constitute a renunciation
of his right to controvert the claim unless he submits reasonable
grounds for the failure to make the necessary reports, on the basis of
which grounds the Commissioner may reinstate his right to controvert
the claim.
"Whenever for any reason compensation payments cease, the employer or
his insurance carrier shall, within sixteen days thereafter, send to
the Commissioner a notice on a form prescribed by the Commissioner that
such payment has been stopped. Such notice shall contain the name of
the injured employee or his principal dependent, the date of the
accident, the date up to which compensation paid. In case the employer
or his insurance carrier fails so to notify the Commissioner of the
cessation of payments within twelve days after the date on which
compensation has been paid, the Commissioner may, after a hearing, fine
such employer or his insurance carrier in an amount not exceeding one
hundred pesos, which shall be paid into the Workmen's Compensation
Administration Fund. Such penalty shall be collected in like manner as
an award of compensation. Whenever the Commissioner shall deem it
advisable, he may require any employer or insurance carrier to make a
deposit with the Commissioner to secure prompt and convenient payment
of such compensation, from which deposit may be deducted such fine as
shall be imposed by the Commissioner.
"All awards of compensation required to be made to minor under this Act
shall be paid to or for the benefit of such minors under such rules as
may be adopted by the Commissioner. Where such awards exceed four
hundred pesos, the Commissioner may, in his discretion, require the
appointment of a guardian before making payment. The Commissioner may
also require a guardian to submit to him reports on the use of money
paid to minors.
"Sec. 46. Jurisdiction. — The Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear and
decide claims for compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Act,
subject to appeal to the Supreme Court, in the same manner and in the
same period as provided by law and by Rules of Court for appeal from
the Court of Industrial Relations to the Supreme Court.
"Sec. 47. General powers and duties. — The
Commissioner shall have full power and authority:
"(a) To take charge of the administration of the
Workmen's Compensation Act.
"(b) To hear and determine all claims for
compensation under this Act in the manner herein provided; to require
and order medical service for injured employees as provided herein; to
approve and fix attorney's fees and claims for medical services; to
excuse failure to give notice either of injury, sickness or death of an
employee; to approve agreements, make, modify or rescind awards, and
make findings of fact and rulings of law; to determine the time for
payment of compensation and order reimbursements of employers for
amounts advanced; to assess penalties, compute awards, and compromise
actions for the collection of awards; to require and order physical
examinations of injured employees; and to exercise such other powers as
may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act. For every
agreement approved, a fee of one peso for every hundred pesos of the
entire amount of compensation to be paid shall be collected from the
employer for administration costs: Provided however, That none of these
amounts shall be charged against the compensation due the employee. The
Commissioner shall have a seal for the authentication of his orders,
awards, and proceedings.
"(c) To make, amend, and rescind, subject to the
approval of the Secretary of Labor, such rules and regulations as may
be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.
"(d) To appoint, employ and maintain, subject to
existing civil service rules and regulations, such referees, agents,
physicians, nurses, lawyers, accountants, actuarians, inspectors, and
such other technicians and clerical personnel as may be necessary to
carry out the purposes of this Act, or to perform the duties and
exercise the powers conferred by law upon the Commissioner.
"Sec. 48. Referees — Duties and powers. — A
referee shall devote his entire time to the duties of his office and
shall receive compensation of not less than three thousand six hundred
pesos per annum. It shall be the duty of a referee, under the rules and
regulations of the Commissioner, to hear and determine claims for
workmen's compensation, to conduct such hearings and investigations and
to make such orders, decisions, rules and determinations as may be
required by any order of the Commissioner.
"Sec. 49. Procedure. — Any dispute or controversy
concerning compensation under this Act shall be submitted to the
Commissioner as provided herein.
"Hearing shall be held by the Commissioner upon his own motion or upon
the application of any party interested therein. He shall cause
reasonable notice of such hearing to be given to each party interested,
in service upon him personally or mailing a copy thereof to him at his
last known post office address. Such hearing may be adjourned from time
to time in the discretion of the Commissioner and may be heard at such
place or places as he shall designate. All parties in interest shall
have the right to represent at any hearing in person or by counsel or
by any other agent or representative, to present such testimony as may
be pertinent to the controversy before the Commissioner and to
cross-examine the witnesses against them. The Commissioner may receives
as evidence and use as proof of any fact in dispute the following
matters, in addition to sworn testimony presented at open hearing:
"1. Reports of attending examining physician.
"2. Reports of investigators appointed by the
Commissioner.
"3. Reports of the employer, including copies of time
sheets, book accounts or other records.
"4. Hospital records in relation to the case.
"The Commissioner may also cause an examination to be made of the
person of the injured laborer, or without notice take testimony or
inspect the premises where the injury occurred. All ex parte evidence
received by the Commissioner shall be reduced to writing and any party
in interest shall have the opportunity to examine and rebut the same by
further evidence.
"Hearing arising under this Act may be held before the Commissioner or
any of the referees.
"Any party in interest who is dissatisfied with the order entered by
the referee may petition to review the same and the referee may re-open
said case, or may amend or modify said order, and such amended or
modified order shall be a final award unless objection be made thereto
by petition for review. In case said referee does not amend or modify
said order, he shall refer the entire case to the Commissioner, who
shall thereupon review the entire record in said case, and, in his
discretion, may take or order the taking of additional testimony, and
shall make his findings of facts and enter his award thereon. The award
of the Commissioner shall be final unless a petition to review same
shall be filed by an interested party. Every petition for review shall
be in writing and shall specify in detail the particular errors and
objections. Such petition must be filed within fifteen days after the
entry of any referee's order or award of the Commissioner unless
further time is granted by the referee or the Commissioner within said
fifteen days. All parties in interest shall be given due notice of the
entry of any referee's order or any award of the Commissioner, and said
period of fifteen days shall begin to run only after such notice, and
the mailing of a copy of said order or award addressed to the last
known address of any in interest shall be sufficient notice.
"The Commissioner, or any agent, deputy or referee designated by him
shall have power and authority to issue subpoenas, to compel the
attendance of witnesses or parties, and the production of books, papers
or records, and to administer oaths.
"The Commissioner may, in his discretion, assess the cost of attendance
and mileage of witnesses subpoenaed by either party to any proceeding,
against the other party to such proceeding, when in his judgment the
necessity of subpoenaing such witness arises out of the raising of any
incompetent, irrelevant or sham issue by such other party.
"A full and complete record shall be kept of all proceedings had before
the Commissioner, his deputy or any referee on any hearing and all
testimony shall be taken down and transcribed by a stenographer
appointed by the Commissioner.
"A transcribed copy of the evidence and proceedings, or any specific
part thereof, of any investigation or hearing taken by a stenographer
appointed by the Commissioner, being certified by such stenographer to
be a true and correct transcript of the testimony on the investigation
of hearing of a particular witness, or of a specific part thereof,
carefully compared by him from his original notes, and to be a correct
statement of evidence and proceedings had on such investigation or
hearing so purporting to be taken and subscribed, may be received as
evidence by the Commissioner and by any court with the same effect as
if such stenographer were present and testified to the facts so
certified. Copy of such transcript shall be furnished on demand to any
party upon the payment of fifty centavos per folio to the stenographer
so furnishing such transcript.
"Sec. 50. Decision. — After the hearing of a case
by the Commissioner, his deputy or any of the referees, the same shall
be decided according to its merits and the decision be promulgated and
signed by the Commissioner or his deputy. Fifteen (15) days after the
promulgation of the decision the same shall become final unless
previously appealed.
"Sec. 51. Enforcement of award. — Any party in
interest may file in any court of record in the jurisdiction of which
the accident occurred a certified copy of a decision of any referee or
the Commissioner, from which no petition for review or appeal has been
taken within the time allowed therefor, as the case may be, or a
certified copy of a memorandum of agreement duly approved by the
Commissioner, whereupon the Court shall render a decree or judgment in
accordance therewith and notify the parties thereof.
"The decree or judgment shall have the same effect, and all proceedings
in relation thereto shall thereafter be the same as though the decree
or judgment had been rendered in a suit duly heard and tried by the
Court, except that there shall be no appeal therefrom.
"The Commissioner shall, upon application by the proper party or the
Court before which such action is instituted, issue a certification
that no petition for review or appeal within the time prescribed by
section forty-nine hereof has been taken by the respondent.
"Sec. 52. Appropriation. — The sum of two hundred
ninety-eight thousand pesos not otherwise appropriated is hereby set
aside for the proper enforcement of this Act: Provided, however, That
monies paid into the Workmen's Compensation Fund shall be made
immediately available to defray the expenses for the enforcement of
this Act as provided in section fifty-five thereof.
"Sec. 53. Deposits of governments entities to
guarantee payment of compensation. — The National, provincial and
municipal governments, as well as government-owned or controlled
corporations employing laborers and employees comprised within the
provisions of this Act, shall deposit with the office of the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner an amount to be determined by said
Commissioner to guarantee payment of compensation. The said deposits
shall be received by the Commissioner and disbursed, thru the authority
of the Commissioner or his deputy, as compensation payments to injured
laborers of the government entities making the contribution or the
laborers' dependents in cases of death whenever the said laborers or
their dependents are entitled to compensation under the provisions of
this Act.
"Sec. 54. Contribution of insurance carriers. —
The Commissioner shall also be authorized to collect from insurance
carriers one per centum of their gross receipts on premiums
collected from insurance of workmen's compensation liabilities to cover
administration costs: Provided, however, That nothing contained in this
Act shall prevent the Government from requiring employees from
obtaining insurance policies from the Government for the purposes of
this Act.
"Sec. 55. Expenses of administration. — There is
hereby created a special fund to be known as the Workmen's Compensation
Fund, which shall be under the custody and control of the Workmen's
Compensation Commissioner, and shall be used exclusively for the
payment of the expenses of the administration of this Act. All monies
collected under section forty-four and under paragraph (4) of section
forty-seven and under section fifty-six of this Act shall be paid into
said fund: Provided, however, That the expenses of the Workmen's
Compensation Commission shall be included in the annual budget of the
Department of Labor: And provided, further, That the surplus amounts of
the Workmen's Compensation Fund shall revert to the general funds of
the National Treasury.
"For every final decision awarding compensation, the uninsured employer
or insurance carrier against whom the decision is made shall pay into
the Fund the sum of one peso and an additional charge of one peso for
every one hundred pesos of the entire amount of compensation to be
paid.
"For every adjourned hearing, and for every decision of a referee
affirmed by the Commissioner on review, the uninsured employer or
insurance carrier making the request for adjournment or seeking such
review shall pay into the Fund the sum of five pesos.
"If the monies in the Fund are not sufficient to cover the expenses of
administration in any fiscal year, the Commissioner shall determine as
soon as possible the amount of the deficiency. The Commissioner shall
then assess upon and collect from each insurance carrier and each
uninsured employer where capital exceeds ten thousand pesos the
proportion of such deficiency that the total compensation or payments
made by such uninsured employer or insurance carrier bore to the total
compensation or payments made by all uninsured employers and insurance
carriers. The amounts so collected shall be used to reimburse the
National Treasury for the appropriations therefor made by the
Government for the payment in the first instance of the expenses for
administering this Act.
"There is hereby created a committee composed of Workmen's Compensation
Commissioner as chairman two representatives of insurance carriers who
shall be appointed by the Secretary of Labor upon recommendation of the
uninsured employers and insurance carriers, which shall have the duty
of advising the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner in carrying out the
purposes of this section."
Sec. 25. This Act shall take effect upon its
approval.
Approved: June 20, 1952
|