The Workmen's Compensation Act 1906 was an
Act of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
which deals with the right of working people for compensation for personal injury. The Act expanded the scheme created by the
Workmen's Compensation Act 1897
The Workmen's Compensation Act 1897 was British law in operation from 1897 to 1946. The Britain followed the German model. Joseph Chamberlain, leader of the Liberal Unionist party and in coalition with the Conservatives, designed a plan that was en ...
.
It fixes the compensation that a workman may recover from an employer in case of accident giving to a workman, except in certain cases of "serious and wilful misconduct", a right against his employer to a certain compensation on the mere occurrence of an accident where the common law gives the right only for negligence of the employer.
A 'workman' was defined as:
any person who enters into or works under a contract of service or apprenticeship with an employer, whether by way of manual labour, clerical work or otherwise, and whether the contract is expressed or implied, is oral or in writing.
Exceptions were made, including non-manual workers employed on annual pay over £250, casual workers employed "otherwise than for the purposes of their employer's trade or business",
outworkers and family workers. Hence specific exclusions were made at both the top and bottom end of the labour market.
The
National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act 1946 abolished the scheme (except for transitional cases) and replaced it with one of state liability.
See also
*
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...
*
Workmen's Compensation Act 1897
The Workmen's Compensation Act 1897 was British law in operation from 1897 to 1946. The Britain followed the German model. Joseph Chamberlain, leader of the Liberal Unionist party and in coalition with the Conservatives, designed a plan that was en ...
*
Contracts of Employment Act 1963
*
UK labour law
United Kingdom labour law regulates the relations between workers, employers and trade unions. People at work in the UK can rely upon a minimum charter of employment rights, which are found in Acts of Parliament, Regulations, common law and equit ...
*
English tort law
Notes
References
*Simon Deakin, 'The historical process of wage formation', in Linda Clarke et al., ''The Dynamics of Wage Relations in the New Europe'' (2000) pp. 38–9
External links
* Text of the Ac
{{UK legislation
United Kingdom labour law
United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1906
1906 in labor relations
Workers' compensation