The committee this day met, Hon. Edwin Y. Webb presiding. The CHAIRMAN. We have met this morning for the purpose of hearing various gentlemen in advocacy of House bill 476. This meeting was called at the request of Representative McGillicuddy. The chairman understands that there are several persons who would like to be heard in advocacy of the bill, and the chairman recognizes Judge McGillicuddy. STATEMENT OF HON. DANIEL J. McGILLICUDDY. Mr. McGILLICUDDY. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, this is the same bill that this committee considered during the last Congress and reported favorably. There is nothing new, no new principle in the bill that leads into any experimental field. Thirty-three States in the country have already adopted compensation legislation, and it has worked so well in every State wherever it has been tried that, so far as I know, no State after having once adopted the compensation principle, has abandoned it or repealed the law. I think that is a very significant test of the compensation principle, and shows that it is not only sound in principle, but is also 3 economically sound. I am not going to take the time of the committee to go through the bill in detail, but I do wish to call attention to some of the principal features of it. In the first place, this bill covers all Federal employees. As you are aware, under the present law, the law of 1908, about one-quarter of the Federal employees in the more hazardous employments are covered. I think you will become convinced when you hear the views of those who are to appear before the committee this morning, from the labor bureau, that the present law is absurdly inadequate in its practical working. This bill covers, as I have said, all civilian Government employees. Compensation is granted for injuries incurred by reason of accidents and occupational diseases. The amount of the compensation for total disability is two-thirds of the monthly wage, and for partial disability two-thirds of the difference between the amount of the monthly wage and whatever the employee is able to earn in his partially disabled condition. Those amounts have been fixed in this bill because experience has demonstrated that they are the nearest to being satisfactory, considering two things: First, it gives to the employee a fair remuneration or compensation for his injury in giving him two-thirds of his pay; and, in the second place, it leaves one-third of the pay as an inducement to return to work as soon as he is able to do so, and thereby takes away the temptation to feign illness or malinger. Medical attendance and hospital service are supplied, and for the first three days there is no compensation for disability, except that medical attendance and hospital service, etc., is furnished. The death payment to the widow is 35 per cent of the monthly pay of the deceased employee. To the widower, if there is no child, 35 per cent, if wholly dependent for support upon the deceased employee at the time of her death, and such proportionate amount as the commission deems proper if partly dependent. This compensation is to be paid until death or marriage. I am not going to take up the time of this committee to go through the provisions with reference to the children and dependent parents, brothers, sisters, etc. Burial expenses to the extent of $100, and transportation of the body in case of death, in the discretion of the officials of the board, are provided for. There is a provision for payment in a lump sum, in certain cases where a person is to remove from the country. No liability is to be created for compensation unless written notice is given within 48 hours after the injury or death. No compensation is allowed to any person unless he makes a claim within 60 days after the injury or within one year after death. For any reasonable cause shown, the commission may allow original claims for compensation for disability resulting from injury or occupational disease to be made at any time within one year. I desire to call particular attention to the provision for medical examination. All injured employees are required to submit to medical examination at the request of the official, and no compensation is payable so long as any employee refuses to submit to such examination. Another section of the bill which I consider very important, provides that before any employee is admitted to the public service he must submit to an examination, and if, upon that examination, it is disclosed that there are symptoms of an occupational disease, or of a physical condition that would render the employee likely to contract such disease, or even sustain an injury, he shall not be appointed to any position for which he is adjudged unfitted. I think that is not only a good provision so far as the employee is concerned, but it will materially tend to raise the standard and efficiency of all Government employees and thereby promote the public service. The bill also takes care of those cases where a third person is liable for an injury to an employee. The administration of the bill is placed in the hands of three commissioners, who are to be appointed by the President. There is just one other provision that I desire to call attention to, and that is section 36, which provides that the commission shall study the causes of accidents and occupational diseases among civilian employees of the Government and report annually to Congress the result of its investigations and make such recommendations as it may deem proper to the various departments as to the best means of preventing accidents and occupational diseases. I think this is one of the most important features of this bill, and if there were no other reasons for passing it this would be an impelling one. It is a good thing to compensate for injuries and disease, but it is a much better thing to prevent them. It is confidently expected by the friends of this bill that that provision will very materially reduce in the specially hazardous departments of employment the number of accidents, and that it will also very materially reduce the causes of occupational disease. Now, I am not going to go through the bill in detail. I know that this committee will consider the bill line by line and section by section. There are several gentlemen here who would like to be heard, and I shall now give them that opportunity. The CHAIRMAN. We are very much obliged to you, Mr. McGillicuddy, for your explanation. I understand that Dr. Andrews desires to make a statement. STATEMENT OF MR. JOHN B. ANDREWS, SECRETARY OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR LABOR LEGISLATION, 131 EAST TWENTY-THIRD STREET, NEW YORK CITY. Mr. ANDREWS. We can assume, of course, in discussing this bill that the principle of workmen's compensation is accepted. Congress accepted the principle in 1908, when it passed the existing law. Thirty-three of the fifty States and Territories of the country since that time have also enacted workmen's compensation laws and have thereby accepted the principle. The important features, then, which we can discuss very briefly, relate to the adequacy and reasonableness of the proposed legislation, and we can also say a few words about the inadequacy of the existing law of 1908. In the first place, the existing law covers only one-fourth of the employees of the United States Government. About 300,000 men and women in the United States Government employ are without the protection of workmen's compensation. That is very serious, inasmuch as the sovereign "can do no wrong," and these employees, |