Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Act, 1955
Acts of the Oireachtas
Source: Acts of the Oireachtas

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paragraphs: —In this Act—
“the Acts of 1897 and 1900” means the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1897 and 1900;
“the Act of 1906” means the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1906;
“the Act of 1934” means the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1934 (No. 9 of 1934);
“the Act of 1948” means the Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Act, 1948 (No. 23 of 1948);
“the Act of 1953” means the Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Act, 1953 (No. 25 of 1953).
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paragraphs: —The Minister for Social Welfare may by order appoint a day to be the appointed day for the purposes of this Act, and in this Act “the appointed day” means the day so appointed.
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paragraphs: —(1) Where a workman is entitled to a weekly payment by way of compensation under the Acts of 1897 and 1900 or the Act of 1906 in respect of any week commencing on or after the appointed day—
(a) the workman shall be entitled, in respect of that week, to a supplementary allowance under this section equal—
(i) to four-fifths of the weekly payment, or
(ii) in a case in which, if this Act had not been passed, the workman would, consequent upon section 3 of the Act of 1953, be entitled in respect of that week to a total amount exceeding the aggregate of the weekly payment and four-fifths thereof—to four-fifths of the weekly payment together with the excess of that total amount over that aggregate,
(b) the supplementary allowance under this section shall for all the purposes of the Acts of 1897 and 1900 or the Act of 1906 (whichever is appropriate) be deemed to be part of the weekly payment and shall accordingly be payable by the employer liable to make the weekly payment.
(2) The references in subsection (1) of this section to a weekly payment by way of compensation under the Acts of 1897 and 1900 or the Act of 1906 include references to—
(a) any sum payable under section 14 of the Act of 1934, and
(b) the supplementary allowance payable under section 3 of the Act of 1948.
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paragraphs: —(1) In the Third Schedule to the Act of 1934, as amended by section 6 of the Act of 1948, the following rule shall be substituted for Rule 2:
“2. The weekly payment shall in no case exceed ninety shillings.”
(2) In provision (i) and provision (ii) of subsection (2) of section 7 of the Act of 1948, “ninety shillings” shall be substituted for “fifty shillings”.
(3) Subject to subsection (4) of this section, subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall come into operation on the appointed day and shall apply in relation to the computation of a weekly payment by way of compensation under the Act of 1934, notwithstanding that the accident happened before the appointed day.
(4) Where a workman is entitled to a weekly payment by way of compensation under the Act of 1934 in respect of a week commencing before and ending on or after the appointed day, the amendments effected by subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall not apply in respect of him until the expiration of that week.
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paragraphs: —(1) The Second Schedule to the Act of 1934, as amended by section 8 of the Act of 1953 and the Schedule thereto, is hereby amended in accordance with the First Schedule to this Act.
(2) In subsection (2) of section 22 of the Act of 1934, as amended by subsection (2) of section 8 of the Act of 1953, “eighteen hundred pounds” shall be substituted for “twelve hundred pounds”.
(3) The amendments effected by subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall not apply to any case where the accident happened before the appointed day.
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paragraphs: —(1) In subsections (2) and (3) of section 7 of the Act of 1934 and the Second and Fifth Schedules thereto, “sixteen” shall be substituted for “fifteen” wherever “fifteen” occurs.
(2) The amendments effected by subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any case where the accident happened before the appointed day.
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paragraphs: —(1) In section 23 of the Act of 1934, “two weeks” shall be substituted for “four weeks”.
(2) The amendment effected by subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to any case where the accident happened before the appointed day.
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paragraphs: —(1) Where a weekly payment (including a weekly payment which commenced before the appointed day) to a workman in a case of total incapacity has been continued for not less than two years, the Court, on the application of the workman made at any time after he has attained the age of twenty-one years, if it is satisfied that the workman remains totally incapacitated as a result of the injury and that he is likely to continue to be so incapacitated for the rest of his life, may by order provide for the payment by the employer, by way of redemption as from the date of the application of his liability to make the weekly payment, of a lump sum of such amount as may be determined by the Court, subject to the limitation that the amount so determined shall not exceed such amount as would, if invested on the date of the application in the purchase of an immediate life annuity, purchase an annuity for the workman equal to seventy-five per cent. of the annual value of the weekly payment.
(2) In determining under subsection (1) of this section the amount of a lump sum, the Court, as well as having regard to all other matters which it considers relevant, shall have regard, in particular, to the age of the workman and to his expectation of life.
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paragraphs: —(1) In subparagraph (1) of paragraph 4 of the Fifth Schedule to the Act of 1934, “the date of the death of the workman on whose earnings they were dependent” shall be substituted for “the date of such allocation”.
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paragraphs: —A person shall not be entitled to a supplemental allowance under section 3 of the Act of 1953 in respect of any week commencing on or after the appointed day.
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paragraphs: —(1) This Act may be cited as the Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Act, 1955.
(2) The Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1934 to 1953, and this Act may be cited together as the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1934 to 1955.