The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-10
URGES WIDER SCOPE
FOR WORKMEN'S
Chairman Bowling Would ".
tend Benefits TO All Glasses
of Employees.
AWARDS NOW TOTAL 700

Chairman Robert T. bowling W Oh.
STATE Workmen's Compensation C,,Iu....
sion, speaking from the FIRST six u,r,ts
of experience with the new law. pa,. %
THE SUN Yesterday his and the commits.
slon's view on changes which should 10
made In it at the present session NJ tbs
Legislature. This Is the mater which tho
National civic Federation has Appointed
committee Of fifteen 20 consider. Chair.
man bowling also defended the approp,.,.
ton demands Of the commission against
the implications OF State Conptrull.r
Travis who considered them at first sight
unwa rrantably large.
No definite figures on the work Of m.
commission for its first half year VIII 10
available until all cases flied before the
LIST OF January are cleared M. uut tn,
chairman gave out some estimates lin
to last Wednesday los, 600 first notices o..
injuries, he said. had been filed Award,
had been made in 5000 cases and sbl.,
10000 are still pending
Fifteen to 20 per cent. OF the case.
filed. he though = would be fair estimate
of the proportion compensatabie. Rewards
have been made IN about 300 death cases
The commission now has slightly none
than 800 employees
The law 40 whole Inks the chair
man. has proved very efficient lie nus
no fears for it's constitutionalitv. since
the decision OF the United States supreme
Court UNFOLDING tho ohio law Asid.
from few minor changes relating ~
! organization and management. he sug.
gested three amendments broadening is
! scope. Instead Of being applicable to
workmen I'm forty-two classes OF industry
| II should. he thinks, I've made applicable
] to all classes with the exception OF domes-
| tic service arid farm labor: il should In
| cude municipal and all public employees;
and ID should make more equitable prbNt.
sion in death cases for dependent parents
| or children whore there Is no widow.
| I'VE nave TO handle att gether too many
! cases on the border line and make our
own special decisions on the Legality NJ
each one said the chairman ~ gen.
| eral inclusion Of every one engaged IN
hazardous cmployments except farm and
domestic ldhorers, such as has been
adopted In other states. IL the sensible
| and just provision.
Further. the difficulty with the state
| ment that the law only affects employers
| engaged IN buslness TO rcmunerstive pur-
poses should be- adjusted. According to the
opinion OF the Attnrne, General, this cuts
cut public employees from compensation,
| although the last thing that the Legsia-
ture did II The law Was to add an amend
nent including such employees
state Comptroller Travis publicly OBJ
! ieCted to our request for an appropria-
ton for $1,000, 900. saying that he would
investigate il carefully because of It's
size. We welcome any investigation. but
ne neglected to observe that the appro-
priation was not for a year but fol-
| twenty -one months. For the fiscal year
ending October, 1915. We asked fol
! S7Os,000
The state Insurance Fund. said Chair
man Bowling. had not received a lous
enough trial TO warrant any definite con
4 illusions. The first rates. set high fol
safety, had been reduced 20 per cent
and still 60 per cent of the premiums r.,
ceved would have sufiiced to pay al
awards and hold 10 per cent. reserve
Death awards, which run indefinitely, are
however p.l.ng up all the time. and Their
is always the possibility of some gres
accident which would he a tremendous
drain.