Navigating Accident Leave and Salary Deductions: What Should This Employee Expect?

I have a query regarding Accident On Duty & Salary during the same period of leave.

Detailed Background:

- The employee is with the Sales & Marketing Department of Public Ltd. at a middle management level.
- The employee has been with the company for 1 year and 8 months and is a confirmed employee.
- During an official tour from the base location to the dealer location in an official car, the employee met with a major accident.
- He sustained severe injuries to his forehead, left shoulder, thighs, multiple fractures on the nose bone, and other minor injuries.
- The accident occurred on 05-Sep-14, and treatment is still ongoing (may take 1-2 months more as advised by the orthopedic surgeon).

Query:

- Is the employee entitled to accidental leaves?
- Will he receive a salary for the said period?

Additional Information:

- The salary for the first month has been credited to the employee's account, which is to be recovered from the next month's salary.

Reason for the Query:

- Today, the employee received a call from the HR Department regarding the deduction of salary, stating that the employee will not receive a salary during this accident leave period.
- Under GPA (Group Personal Accident), the employee will receive some amount, approximately Rs. 5000 per week, while the employee's monthly salary is Rs. 1.1 Lakh.
- The employee has the following balanced leaves available: PL - 20, SL - 0.

I request all of you to provide comments and your guidance in this case.

Thank you all.

From the facts submitted, it is clear that the said employee is not covered under the ESI Scheme. The said employee also appears to not be covered under The Sales Promotion Employees (CoS) Act, 1976, due to his receiving a higher salary, etc. However, it is also not clear whether the said employee, who sustained an accident in the course and out of employment, is covered as an "employee" within the meaning of the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923.

If the said employee is also not covered under the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923, then it will not be feasible for him to claim any compensation under the said Act from his employer because he will not be entitled to the compensation of temporary disablement benefit as admissible under the said Act.

I understand that there are no leaves that can be termed as "Accidental Leaves" in different labor laws. These are called temporary or permanent disablement benefits or dependents' benefits as the case may be. However, it can be explored if there is any Accidental Leave policy of the Public Ltd. company in which the employee is working and is governed. It can also be checked if the employer has any Accidental Insurance Policy with any commercial insurance company from where the said employee can make his claim.

In the past, some discussions were held on CiteHR, though on different facts. The online link to the said discussion is mentioned as follows, which is also relevant to the subject: https://www.citehr.com/117108-accide...bour-laws.html

If all the channels as mentioned above are not available to the employee, I think the injured employee will have no alternative but to make claims by filing a civil suit for compensation/damages in the appropriate court, which may take a long time for a decision. However, since this is a complex question, I would also expect that the seniors or experts may kindly offer their comments on the above situation.

Regards

Even though the injured was drawing a salary of Rs 1.1 lakhs, he should come under the purview of the Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Service) Act and the Employees' Compensation Act, subject to certain conditions. Therefore, if the injured employee has been working as a sales promotion employee of a pharmaceutical company (the Act was primarily passed to cover these people only) or such other industries which were later added for coverage of the Act, such as cosmetics, soaps and disinfectants, ready-made garments, soft drinks, biscuits and confectioneries, automobile, electronics, computers, electrical appliances, and paints, it will become the employer's responsibility to grant paid leave and take care of the medical expenses until he is fit to resume work.

It should also be remembered that it is the responsibility of the employer to take necessary insurance, personal accident, and mediclaim according to the salary of the employees to mitigate the loss/cost. If the employer had taken insurance sufficient to compensate for the loss of income of the employee, naturally, there would not have arisen much cost.

Workmen's (Employees') Compensation Act

Now coming to the Workmen's (Employees') Compensation Act also, the same principle will apply. If he has been working purely in a managerial capacity only, he would be denied the compensation; otherwise, the employer is liable to take care of expenses in connection with medical care and pay compensation. This could also be mitigated by means of insurance.

Moreover, the company should have handled the matter in a more professional way by giving the salary in full or paying an equivalent amount as an advance and keeping the disputes pending. This is because the matter is a road accident case, and the final award will be from the MACT (Motor Accident Claim Tribunal). The only thing is that the employee should not be allowed to take advantage of the accident by claiming loss of pay from the insurers and taking pay from the company. Therefore, there can also be an understanding that once the court settlement is made, the amount received as salary or advance would be returned to the company.

Regards,
Madhu.T.K

Employer Responsibility During Accidents on Duty

The accident occurred during official duty, and any mishap that took place is the responsibility of the employer. The employer must bear all expenses incurred by the employee, such as hospitalization charges. The employee is eligible to receive their full salary without any deduction, and they do not need to apply for leave. As per the Act, the employee should receive all benefits until they return to a normal life. The employer should treat the employee on humanitarian grounds. If the employee goes to the Labor court, much more compensation will have to be paid. Please consult your lawyer and act accordingly.

Regards,
D. SUBBA RAO

Company's Liability in Employee Accidents

The employee met with an accident "during and in the course of employment." Therefore, it is the duty of the company to compensate for his losses, referring to some Indian court verdicts. He loses working ability, physical strain, mental strain, etc., for which the company is liable. If he approaches the court, then the company has to pay his full salary until he recovers. Even if dismissed, the company has to compensate until he joins another job.