RELIEF SCHEME POINTS

Hawera Star, Volume L, 18 December 1930, Page 4

RELIEF SCHEME POINTS

LIABILITY FOR COMPENSATION.

BOARD STATES POSITION.

(By Telegraph —Press Association.; WELLINGTON, Dec. 17.

Many inquiries as to the position of employers of casual workers under the Unemployment Board’s No. 2 scheme for urgent Christmas relief in regard to workers’ compensation have caused the hoard to make the following statement: Legal liability for workers’ compensation risk will be undertaken by the board only in those cases where employers under Scheme No. 2 are uot insured at December 17, 1930. The undertaking by the board of liability is not iutondod to displace an insurance cover alioady in existence or to provide an inducement for employers tq lapse existing policies. When an accident to a worker under Scheme No. 2 occurs and the employer is not insured against workers' compensation liability, the employer must notify the accident immediately in wiitir.o- to the nearest branch of the .State Fire and Accident Ofiice. This branch w ill then as speedily as possible make inquiries and inform ‘the board whether J-ability for workers’ compensation has arisen and the extent of that liability. The settlement will be effected through the State Fire and Accident Ofiice. The board decided to-day that no further applications could be considered for subsiides to local bodies under its No. 1 scheme as both the first and supplementary allocations of £25,000 and £SOOO respectively have been exhausted. The work of the board and of the I Unemployment Commissioner is being greatly hampered by hundreds of people writing concerning their individual cases, says a statement issued by the board. It is practically impossible to reply to all the inquiries in detail, and in any case many of the inquiries are in regard to matters which could be dealt with locally. All matters relating to registration and to payment of the levy are in the hands of the postmasters in the various towns. For those classes of exemption definitely laid down in the Act forms of declaration have been obtainable at all post offices since the Act came into force. For those cases recently covered by regulations declaration forms will be available at the post offices withiu the next few days. Local committees to administer the board’s special Christmas scheme on the basis of a subsidy of £1 for £1 on wages only have been set up in various centres and it is to these local -committees that notifications of work available or requests for work should be made. Any person desiring w T ork should register at the nearest Labour Department. bureau or post office, as only those so registered can be considered. Applications cannot be dealt with by the Unemployment Board itself. Numerous requests for grants or for other financial assistance to enable manufacturers, farmers and others to 'carry on or to extend their activities are being received. Whatever may be the future policy of the board in this respect it is not yet ready to consider such applications. As soon as its policy in this respect is decided full publicity will be given to it.