UNIT – I Lesson 1 HRM – AN OVERVIEW Lesson Outline Nature of ...

Other Assistance by Government
Social security of employees comes within the fold of HRM. Government assists
employees both in organized and unorganized sectors through several social security
schemes and directives.
Social Security Legislation in India
The Government of India has passed various enactments from time to time.
Important among them are:
i. The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923.
ii. The Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948.
iii. The Employee’s Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1961.
iv. The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
v. The payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.
The Workmen’ Compensation Act, 1923
The main objective of the Act is the Act is to ensure compensation to workers for
accidents occurred during the course of employment. This Act covers workers employed
in factories, mines, plantations, mechanically propelled vehicles, construction works,
railways, ships, circus and other hazardous occupations specified in schedule II of the Act.
It does not apply to the Armed Forces, casual workers and workers covered by the
Employee’s State Insurance Act 1948.
The Act is administered by the State Government by appointing commissioners for
this purpose under S.20 of the Act.
Under this Act, compensation is payable by the employer to the workman for all
personal injuries caused by industrial accidents which disable him / her for more than
three days. In case of the death of workman, the compensation is paid to the dependants.
The Act also specifies that in case a workman contracts any occupational disease, which is
specified in its third schedule, such disease shall ordinarily be treated as an employment
injury arising out of and in the course of employment. The scale of compensation is stated
under the Act and the compensation is payable depending on the nature of injury and
whether it is partial disablement or total disablement.