The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1915-10-01
Industrial Accident Board

Industrial Accident Board
Outline Of the Michigan State Work.
mems Compensation Law
Last Saturday and Sunday the
Herald. Advance family enjoyeda n
visit from a party of Michigan
friends, composed of Mr.. and
Mrs. John E. Kinnane, nephew
and neice of the editor and Mrs.
w. E. Fotheringham, all of Bay
City, Mich. The latter is going
on a visit to friends at Seattle,
while Mr.. Kinnane and wife are
going to the same city to attend
a meeting Of the National Associ
alton of Industrial Accident
Boards and Commissions. Mr..
Kinnane, who is chairman Of
Michigan state board, is also
president of the national associa-
ton, which convened at Seattle
on the 3Oth ult Mr.. and Mrs.
Kinnane 60 from Seattle to San
Francisco and Los Angeles,
where they will make short Wis
it's, and on their return to Michi-
gan, by the southern route will
make short stop at Dallas,
Texas.
The Industrial Accident Board
OF Michigan is a state commits.
sion appointed by the governor,
and as our own state of South
Dakota has no board of this char.
acter, the following quotations
from a bulletin issued by the
Michigan board, December, 1913,
about a year after its appoint.
ment, may be OF interest:
'sThe Compensation Law has become
q most potent factor in the industrial
and social life Of Michigan. More
than ten thousand employers OF labor
have accepted the provisions of law,
practically half million industrial
workers in the factories, mines, rail.
ways, shops, stores, and other indus
tries throughout the state. In addi.
tion to these, IL also covers the EN-.
ployes Of tho state itself. of the "a
counties, the 1O8 cities. 335 villages
l,345 townships, and 1882 school dis
tricts of the state.
The operation ofthe law with partic.
nlar reference 70 the workers under
Its provisions 10 further shown by the
following facts and figures taten from
the records of tho board, viI.: Total
number of accidents reported TO date,
q liz; Of which number there we're 405
fatal, 2,112 amputations, ,I5O major
Causing disa bility of eight weeks or
more), and 11,415 minor Causing
disability of less than eight
weeks). 1t will be noted that under
the "Rules of Procedure" adopted BY
the Board, only accidents which re-
suit in disability continuing for more
than one full working day." and also
accidents involving the loss of men,
ber or resulting in death, are)repOrted
TO the Board; and that the bove num-
Der OF accidents does not include any
injury unless its severity was such as
to cause at least one full days dis
ability.
During the period that the law has
been in operation, there have been
14,4l3 agreements for compensation
filed with aud approved BY the Board;
266 cases of arbitration; 81 cases heard
on Review before the full Board, and
10 appeals to the Supreme Court.
While the immediate purpose of the
law is to provide compensation for
industrial accidents, its influence and
nf4 {e ~ tod "a h0 fcn nh IN
the contrary, it has exerted q most
potent influence in the prevention of
Industrial accidents. One of the most |
gratifying results from the operate n |
Of the law is the steady decrease in |
the number of accidents daily occur. |
ring throughout the state. One year
ago the average was two fatal acci. |
dents each day and 100 accidents that |
were non-fatal. At the present time |
the average of fatal accidents is less |
than one per day, and nOn-fatal acci- |
dents 65. Never before in the history |
OF Michigan has the movement for |
accident prevention and providing |
safety devices Of every description in |
she factory, on the railroad, and in
the mine, been carried forward with |
such zeal. Every industrial accident |
in Michigan now costs money and the |
provision of the law requiring the em.
ployer to furnish medical and hospital |
services makes costly even the minor
accidents where the disability is Of
such short duration as not to extend
into the compensation period. No
system for compelling the installation
Of safety devices and methods, enforc.
ible by penal statutes or executive
orders, could bring about the degree
of perfection and efficiency along that
line which 10 attained today by many
Michigan employers operating under
the Compensation Law. The funda.
mental problem in the management OF
any business enterprise.in the indus
trial world, is to make 1t pay. Every
accident now costs the business fix
ed or readily ascertainable sum OF
money, and it Is not difficult to per-
suade the business man or manager TO |
take active measures to prevent such
drain when CAPTAINS of industry can |