Employer’s liability for compensation

Section 74 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 deals with employer’s liability for compensation. If personal injury is caused to an employee by accident or an occupational disease listed in the Third Schedule arising out of and in the course of his employment, his employer shall be liable to pay compensation in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter: Provided that the employer shall not The Act was enacted on 28 Sep 2020.

(1) If personal injury is caused to an employee by accident or an occupational disease listed in the Third Schedule arising out of and in the course of his employment, his employer shall be liable to pay compensation in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter:

Provided that the employer shall not be so liable—

(a) in respect of such injury which does not result in the total or partial disablement of the employee for a period exceeding three days; and

(b) in respect of such injury, not resulting in death or permanent total disablement caused by an accident which is directly attributable to—

(i) the employee having been at the time thereof under the influence of drink or drugs, or

(ii) the wilful disobedience of the employee to an order expressly given, or to a rule expressly framed, for the purpose of securing the safety of employees, or

(iii) the wilful removal or disregard by the employee of any safety guard or other device which he knew to have been provided for the purpose of securing the safety of employee.

(2) An accident or an occupational disease referred to in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to arise out of and in the course of an employee's employment notwithstanding that he is at the time of the accident or at the time of contracting the occupational disease, referred to in that sub-section, acting in contravention of the provisions of any law applicable to him, or of any orders given by or on behalf of his employer or that he is acting without instructions from his employer, if—

(a) such accident or contracting of such occupational disease would have been deemed so to have arisen had the act not been done in contravention as aforesaid or without instructions from his employer, as the case may be; and

(b) the act is done for the purpose of, and in connection with, the employer's trade or business.

(3) If an employee employed in any employment specified in the Second Schedule contracts any disease specified in the Third Schedule, being an occupational disease peculiar to that employment whilst in the service of an employer in whose service he has been employed for a continuous period of not less than six months, then, such disease shall be deemed to be an injury by accident within the meaning of this section and unless the contrary is proved, the accident shall be deemed to have arisen out of and in the course of the employment.

(4) An accident occurring to an employee while commuting from his residence to the place of employment for duty or from the place of employment to his residence after performing duty, shall be deemed to have arisen out of and in the course of employment if nexus between the circumstances, time and place in which the accident occurred and his employment is established.

(5) The Central Government or the State Government, after giving, by notification, not less than three months' notice of its intention so to do, may, by a like notification, modify or add any description of employment to the employments specified in the Second Schedule, and occupational diseases specified in the Third Schedule and shall specify in the case of employments so modified or added, the diseases which shall be deemed for the purposes of this section to be occupational diseases peculiar to those employments respectively, and thereupon the provisions of sub-section (2) shall apply, in the case of a notification by the Central Government, within the territories to which this Code extends or, in case of a notification by the State Government, within that State as if such diseases had been declared by this Code to be occupational diseases peculiar to those employments.

(6) Save as provided by sub-sections (2), (3) and (4), no compensation shall be payable to an employee in respect of any accident or disease unless the accident or disease is directly attributable to a specific injury by accident or disease arising out of and in the course of his employment.

(7) Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to confer any right to compensation on an employee in respect of any accident or disease if he has instituted in a civil court a suit for damages in respect of the accident or disease against the employer or any other person; and no suit for damages shall be maintainable by an employee in any Court of law in respect of such accident or disease—

(a) if he has instituted a claim to compensation in respect of the accident or disease before a competent authority; or

(b) if an agreement has been made between the employee and his employer providing for the payment of compensation in respect of the accident or disease in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter.

Section 74, The Code on Social Security, 2020 (Act 36 of 2020).