The Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA), is a

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

federal law Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a country has a central government as well as regional governments, such as subnational states or provinces, each with constituti ...

, enacted on September 7, 1916. Sponsored by Sen. John W. Kern (D) of Indiana and Rep. Daniel J. McGillicuddy (D) of Maine, it established compensation to federal

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

employees for wages lost due to job-related injuries. This act became the precedent for " disability insurance" across the country and the precursor to broad-coverage health insurance. President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

signed H.R. 15316 into law on September 7, 1916. The Federal Employees' Compensation Commission was the original administrator of the FECA. However, the Commission did not exist at the time the FECA went into effect and claims accumulated for more than six months while members were selected and sworn into office. The Federal Employees' Compensation Commission officially began its duties on March 14, 1917. The commission was abolished on May 16, 1946, by President Harry S. Truman as part of the

Reorganization Act of 1939 The Reorganization Act of 1939, , is an American Act of Congress which gave the President of the United States the authority to hire additional confidential staff and reorganize the executive branch (within certain limits) for two years subject ...

. Its duties were transferred to the

Federal Security Agency The Federal Security Agency (FSA) was an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government established in 1939 pursuant to the Reorganization Act of 1939. For a time, the agency oversaw food ...

on July 16, 1946. The Act is now administered by the

U.S. Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health, wage and hour standards, unem ...

References

Presidency of Harry S. Truman Presidency of Woodrow Wilson Employee compensation in the United States 1916 in American law United States federal legislation United States Department of Labor {{US-law-stub

Further reading

References