Work Injury Compensation Act

(CHAPTER 354)

(Original Enactment: Act 25 of 1975)

REVISED EDITION 2009

(31st July 2009)

An Act relating to the payment of compensation to employees for injury suffered in the course of their employment.

[5/2008]

[1st October 1975]

PART I

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Work Injury Compensation Act.

[5/2008]

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“approved hospital” means a hospital prescribed to be such under section 14(1);

“Assistant Commissioner” means any person appointed as an Assistant Commissioner (Work Injury Compensation) under section 2A;

“Commissioner” means the Commissioner for Labour appointed under section 3 of the Employment Act (Cap. 91);

“dependant”, in respect of a deceased employee, means the wife, husband, parent, grandparent, step-father, step-mother, child, grandchild, step-child, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, step-brother and step-sister irrespective of whether that person is actually dependent on the employee’s earnings or not and for the purpose of this definition —

(a)	the child of a deceased employee shall be deemed to include the illegitimate child of that employee and any child whose adoption by him has been registered under the Adoption of Children Act (Cap. 4); and
(b)	the parent of a deceased employee shall be deemed to include the father and the mother of an illegitimate child and the person who has registered the adoption of any child under the Adoption of Children Act;

“earnings” means any wages paid to the employee by the employer and any privilege or benefit which is capable of being estimated in money and includes the value of any food or quarters supplied to the employee by the employer if as a result of the accident the employee is deprived of such food or quarters; and any overtime payments or other special remuneration for work done, whether by way of bonus, allowance or otherwise, if of constant character or for work habitually performed except —

(a)	a travelling allowance;
(b)	the value of any travelling concession;
(c)	a contribution paid by the employer towards any pension or provident fund;
(d)	a sum paid to the employee to cover any special expenses incurred by him by reason of the nature of his employment;

“employee” means any person who has entered into or works under a contract of service or apprenticeship with an employer, whether —

(a)	by way of manual labour or otherwise;
(b)	the contract is express or implied or is oral or in writing; and
(c)	the remuneration is calculated by time or by work done,

but does not include any class of persons specified in the Fourth Schedule;

“employer” includes —

(a)	the Government;
(b)	any statutory body or authority;
(c)	the legal personal representative of a deceased employer; and
(d)	in relation to a person employed for the purpose of any game or recreation and engaged or paid through a club, the manager or members of the managing committee of that club,

and where the services of an employee are temporarily lent or let on hire to another person by the person with whom the employee has entered into a contract of service or apprenticeship, the latter shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to continue to be the employer of the employee whilst he is working for that other person;

“injury” includes any condition specified in the Second Schedule;

“investigation officer” means any person appointed as an investigation officer under section 2A;

“medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner registered or exempted from registration under the Medical Registration Act (Cap. 174);

“partial incapacity” means, where the incapacity is of a temporary nature, such incapacity as reduces the earning capacity of an employee in any employment in which he was engaged at the time of the accident resulting in his incapacity and, where the incapacity is of a permanent nature, such incapacity as reduces his earning capacity in every employment which he was able to undertake at the time of the accident:

Provided that every injury specified in the First Schedule, except such injury or combination of injuries in respect of which the percentage or aggregate percentage of the loss of earning capacity as specified in that Schedule against such injury or injuries amounts to or exceeds 100%, shall be deemed to result in permanent partial incapacity;

“seaman” means any person employed as part of the crew of any Singapore ship within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping Act (Cap. 179) and includes the master of any such ship;

“total incapacity” means such incapacity whether of a temporary or permanent nature as incapacitates an employee for all work which he was capable of undertaking at the time of the accident resulting in such incapacity:

Provided that permanent total incapacity shall be deemed to result from an injury or from any combination of injuries specified in the First Schedule where the percentage or aggregate percentage of the loss of earning capacity as specified in that Schedule against such injury or injuries amounts to or exceeds 100%;

“workplace” means any premises where a person is at work or is to work, for the time being works, or customarily works.

[34/80; 5/2008]

(2) If in any proceedings for the recovery of compensation under this Act it appears to the Commissioner or the court that the contract of service or apprenticeship under which the injured person was working at the time when the accident causing the injury happened was illegal, the Commissioner or the court may, if having regard to all the circumstances of the case he or it thinks proper to do so, deal with the matter as if the injured person had at such time been a person working under a valid contract of service or apprenticeship.

(3) Any reference to an employee who has been injured shall, unless the context otherwise requires, where the employee is dead, include a reference to his legal personal representative or to his dependants or any of them.

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(4) This Act shall apply to an accident happening to an employee outside Singapore where the employee is ordinarily resident in Singapore and is employed by an employer in Singapore but is required in the course of his employment to work outside Singapore.

[5/2008]

(4A) This Act shall apply to an accident happening, on or after 1st April 2008, to any seaman onboard any Singapore ship within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping Act (Cap. 179), whether the ship was within or outside Singapore at the time of the accident.

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(5) The exercise and performance of the powers and duties of a department of the Government or a statutory body or authority shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be the trade or business of the Government or statutory body or authority, as the case may be.

Appointment of Assistant Commissioners, investigation officers and authorised persons

2A.—(1) The Commissioner may appoint such number of public officers as Assistant Commissioners (Work Injury Compensation) and investigation officers and such persons as authorised persons, as may be necessary to assist the Commissioner in the administration of this Act.

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(2) The Commissioner may delegate the exercise of all or any of the powers conferred or duties imposed upon him by this Act (except the power of delegation conferred by this subsection) to any Assistant Commissioner, investigation officer or authorised person, subject to such conditions or limitations as the Commissioner may specify.

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Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner and investigation officer to be public servants

2B. The Commissioner and every Assistant Commissioner and investigation officer shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of the Penal Code (Cap. 224).

[5/2008]

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