Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

Workmen's Compensation (Accidents) Convention, 1925 (No. 17) - Sierra Leone (Ratification: 1961)

Article 1 of the Convention. Ensuring the coverage and effective protection of workers in case of industrial accidents. The Committee observes that, pursuant to the Workmen's Compensation Ordinance of 1954 (WCO), employers are liable for the payment of compensation in respect of any personal injury by accident caused to their workers in the course of, or arising out of employment. It also observes that, since 2016, employers with more than five employees are obligated to insure their liability with private insurance carriers, according to section 22 of the Insurance Act of 2016. The Committee further observes that, while all employees are covered under the national legislation, they represent only 10.8 per cent of the labour force (ILO, World Social Protection Database, 2021). The majority of workers in the country thus have no entitlement to compensation in case of work-related accidents for being in a work arrangement that does not qualify as employment under the law, or because they operate in the informal economy, which is prevalent, according to Sierra Leone’s 4th National Human Development Report, 2019, published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). In addition, the Committee observes from the 2018 Integrated Household Survey Report that the largest number of workers in the informal economy are located in regions highly engaged in mining and agriculture, considered particularly dangerous activities, characterized by a high rate of injury. Taking into account the small proportion of workers protected by law in case of work-related accidents and the specificities of the labour market, the Committee requests the Government to consider taking measures to broaden the coverage of the workers’ compensation scheme, or introducing new mechanisms of protection, to ensure that all victims of work-related accidents, or their dependents in case of death, are compensated as set out in the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged in this respect, with a view to progressively extending the protection of workers under the Convention and recalls the possibility of availing itself of the ILO’s technical assistance for this purpose.

The Committee further requests the Government to supply statistical data, to enable it to assess the manner in which national laws and regulations respecting work accidents are applied in practice in Sierra Leone, including in particular: (i) the total number of workers, employees and apprentices employed by all enterprises, undertakings and establishments, to whom the Convention is applicable; (ii) the total amount of compensation paid in cash and the average amount of compensation paid to victims of work accidents; and (iii) the number and nature of work accidents reported and the number of work accidents in respect of which compensation was paid.

Lastly, the Committee recalls the important role of labour inspection in the application of the Convention, and requests the Government to refer to its detailed comments under the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81).

Article 5. Compensation in case of permanent incapacity for work or death. For more than thirty years, the Committee has been drawing the Government’s attention to the fact that sections 6, 7 and 8 of the WCO, 1954 were not fully aligned with Article 5 of the Convention, by restricting the duration of payment of compensation due in respect of a work accident and limiting its total amount, and allowing a lump sum payment (equal to 42 times the worker’s monthly earnings in case of permanent incapacity for work and 56 times the deceased’s monthly earnings in case of death). In its previous comments, the Committee also noted the Government’s indication on the existence of a bill on worker’s compensation that reflected the provisions of the Convention concerning the payment of compensation due to a work accident throughout the period of contingency, and requested the Government to provide information on it.

The Committee notes the Government’s reply, in its report, that the bill on worker’s compensation has not been adopted yet. The Committee further notes that, according to section 13 (1)(a), (2) of the WCO, 1954, the compensation paid in case of permanent incapacity for work or death due to a work accident shall be transferred to a court which may order that the whole or any part of the compensation to be paid to a person entitled or to be invested, applied or otherwise dealt with for his/her benefit in such a manner as the court thinks fit. The Committee recalls that, according to Article 5 of the Convention, the compensation payable to victims of work accidents, in case of permanent incapacity or death, shall, in principle, be paid in the form of periodical payments, as long as the personal injury subsists or as long as the state of dependency exists. Nevertheless, Article 5 of the Convention allows the compensation due to a work accident be wholly or partially paid in the form of a lump sum, if the competent authority is satisfied that it will be properly utilized. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the court or any other supervisory body conducts a review of the circumstances of work accident victims, and the basis on which that body is satisfied that the compensation in case of permanent incapacity for work or death due to a work accident, when paid as a lump sum, will be properly utilized, in line with Article 5 of the Convention. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on any progress made in the adoption of the bill on worker’s compensation and to provide a copy of it, once adopted.

Article 9. Medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical aid. (i) Effective access to medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical aid. In its 2019 General Survey, Universal social protection for human dignity, social justice and sustainable development, paragraph 239, the Committee noted the existence of significant shortages of health and social workers in Sierra Leone, which it found to be challenging to guarantee the availability of adequate essential health care of acceptable quality for the population. The Committee further observes the findings of the UNDP’s National Human Development Report, 2019, according to which the health system in Sierra Leone has failed to deliver effective, safe and quality health interventions due to, particularly, a shortage of healthcare workers, high out-of-pocket payments, distance from public health facilities, and poor-quality services.

The Committee requests the Government (i) to indicate the measures in place to ensure the provision of the necessary medical, surgical and pharmaceutical aid to victims of work accidents as well as the effective access of injured workers to such aid, as required by Article 9 of the Convention and (ii) to provide information on the organization of the health services and facilities through which such aid is provided, and on the type of health providers involved in the provision of such aid.

(ii) Provision of medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical aid free of charge. The Committee observes that, by virtue of section 32 of the WCO, 1954, an employer shall defray the reasonable medical expenses incurred by a worker injured in the course of employment. The Committee further observes that, according to section 34 of the WCO, 1954, the fees and charges for medical aid to workers shall be established in accordance with a scale as may be prescribed, and that no claim for an amount in excess of a fee or charge in accordance with that scale shall lie against an employer in respect of any such medical aid. The Committee recalls that, pursuant to Article 9 of the Convention, the cost of medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical aids recognized to be necessary in consequence of work accidents shall be defrayed either by the employer, by accident insurance institutions, or by sickness or invalidity insurance institutions.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information as regards any scale that would have been adopted for the establishment of fees and charges for medical aid, prescribed pursuant to section 34 of the WCO, 1954, together with an explanation of how these fees and charges relate to the cost of medical care and treatment provided by the country’s health services. The Committee further requests the Government to indicate whether the costs of medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical aid incurred by victims of work accidents that would be in excess of the costs established by such scale(s) and therefore not assumed by the employer, are defrayed by an insurance institution, or whether they are at the charge of the injured worker.

The Committee has been informed that, based on the recommendations of the Standards Review Mechanism Tripartite Working Group (SRM Tripartite Working Group), the Governing Body has decided that member States for which Convention No. 17 is in force should be encouraged to ratify the more recent Employment Injury Benefits Convention, 1964 [Schedule I amended in 1980] (No. 121), or the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102), accepting its Part VI (see GB.328/LILS/2/1). Conventions Nos 121 and 102 reflect the more modern approach to employment injury benefits. The Committee welcomes the indication by the Government that the process of ratification of Convention No. 102 is under way, and that the ratification of Convention No. 121 is being considered. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of any progress made in this regard, and invites the Government to take account of the relevant provisions of these Conventions when addressing the points raised above in relation to the application of Convention No. 17.