Injuries at work yield more money

The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) has passed a bill allowing private employees and contracted workers at state agencies to glean more benefits from a compulsory compensation fund in the event of an accident at work.

The bill, an amendment of a previous piece of legislation, is expected to be enacted by year’s end.

The fund has grown in recent years as “contributions” from private companies and their staff are mandatory. Private employees are entitled to claims if they are injured at work or while carrying out their duties.

Under the amendment bill, the fund will be expanded to cover the more than one million contract workers at state agencies, according to Gen Supakorn Sanguanchartsorakrai, chairman of the NLA committee scrutinising the bill.

He said the benefits had been improved in tandem with the government’s policy to promote social equality and increase access to welfare assistance.

A committee will also be formed to audit how the fund is spent in the interest of transparency.

Gen Supakorn said the crux of the bill was to put a lid on the yearly contributions companies make to the fund, which were seen as growing at too fast a clip.

Once the bill is enacted, the fund will pay out more money over a longer period to employees left severely disabled by workrelated accidents. The current 15-year cap on payments will become a minimum threshold, meaning they will receive money for at least this long.

The medical cost of treating employees who suffer illness due to a work-related accident will also change from a limit of 2 million baht for each employee per incident until their treatment has finished.

In the event of a death, families of the deceased will soon be able to claim up to 100 times the minimum daily wage to cover funeral and other costs.

The bill has yet to receive royal endorsement.