Accident Payment By Pension Wanted

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30528, 25 August 1964, Page 1

Accident Payment By Pension Wanted

INcto Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 24. The removal of industrial accident claims from the law courts, and their payment by pension method rather than by lump sum, were two matters New Zealand would have to look at soon, the Secretary of Labour (Mr H. L. Bockett) said today.

Mr Bockett, who is just back from an International Labour Organisation conference in Geneva, referred to the Government’s recently announced intention to make a comprehensive examination of workers’ compensation.

Overseas he found increasing support for handling workers’ accident cases outside the courts, and the 1.L.0. conference voted in favour of a life pension rather than a lump sum for persons who suffered serious permanent disabilities in the course of employment. . “In New Zealand compensation for permanent disabilities . continues to be settled by lump sum and not by weekly pensions,” he said. “The time appears to be long overdue when legislation here should be brought into line with what is proposed in the 1.L.0. convention and the method which is generally followed in most industrialised countries.” Untler Board Mr Bockett visited Ontario which he said had done away with common law claims for industrial injuries and put them all under a workers’ compensation board, which awarded victims lump sum payments as well as weekly pensions.

The procedure was proving ■popular and had the full support of the unions. One advantage was that it avoided big legal costs which usually surround supreme court cases. Mr Bockett said he favoured

the pension system in most cases, but there were exceptions. In Ontario, for instance, a ybung widow likely to marry again would receive the first two years of a pension in lump sum. He did not think firms would be less careful about accident safety if they were immune from big negligence claims in court, because insurance companies paid the damages now, as they would do under the other system. And there were not many instances of penalty loadings being imposed on premiums of accident prone firms. Next Year Mr Bockett did not think there would be legislative action on the subject until next year’s sitting of Parliament, at the earliest. Two other important policy amendments were made at the LL.O. conference, one on hygiene in commerce and offices, and the other on i policy, and there was discussion on a long list of technical items, and a declaration on South Africa’s apartheid policy, which was the cause of that country withdrawing from the LL.O. last year.

Amendments to the LL.O. convention would now empower the conference, by a two-thirds majority, to expel or suspend from membership of the IJj.O. any member country that had been expelled or suspended by the United Nations': or to suspend from participation in proceedings of any member country found by the United Nations to be flagrantly and persistently pursuing by its legislation a declared policy of racial discrimination. Working Mothers Preliminary discussions were held on the employment of women with family responsibilities, and the employment of young persons in underground work in mines. Decisions of the conference have to be ratified later by two-thirds of the participating countries before they become 1.L.0. policy.