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Labor and Personnel Determining your position on workers' comp. for elected officials
Suppose a selectman slips on the way into town hall and suffers an injury. Would this elected official be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits? The answer is, “No.”
But what if an elected town clerk suffers the same injury? Is he or she covered? The answer is, “It depends.”
A city council or town meeting vote is required to include elected officials as covered employees under a city or town’s workers’ compensation program. Excluded from such eligibility, however, are mayors, selectmen, and city councillors. Other elected officials, such as city or town clerks, may be included, but only as a result of an affirmative vote by the city council or town meeting.
The workers’ compensation law in Massachusetts (M.G.L. Ch. 152, Sect. 69) states, “The terms laborers, workmen and mechanics … shall, if the city council or the town meeting so votes, also include such elected or appointed officers of the city or town, except the mayor, city councilors, selectmen or members of the police or fire force, as the mayor or board of selectmen may, from time to time, designate, as evidenced by a writing filed with the division.”
Keep in mind that the Massachusetts workers’ compensation law dates back almost a century. Chapter 751 of the Acts of 1911 outlined the historic legislation that helped shape the way employee injuries are handled throughout the nation. Nearly a century later, some municipalities are challenged with finding documentation of votes that may have included coverage for elected officials. In some instances, records of such votes, dating as far back as the 1920s, are simply not available.
Though it is a daunting task, a search of archives is essential in uncovering a city or town’s position on workers’ compensation for elected officials. An alternative is to draft an article for a future town meeting or city council session to clearly define who is eligible. Because most cities and towns have added many new positions in recent decades, now is a good time to take a fresh look at who should be covered by workers’ compensation.
If an elected official in a city or town without an affirmative vote on workers’ compensation is injured on the job, Massachusetts law will take precedence and those claims will likely be denied.
Communities are advised to avoid controversy and potential discord by determining where they stand on this matter before an elected official is injured on the job.
Labor and Personnel Determining your position on workers' comp. for elected officials
Determining your position on workers' comp. for elected officials
Suppose a selectman slips on the way into town hall and suffers an injury. Would this elected official be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits? The answer is, “No.”
But what if an elected town clerk suffers the same injury? Is he or she covered? The answer is, “It depends.”
A city council or town meeting vote is required to include elected officials as covered employees under a city or town’s workers’ compensation program. Excluded from such eligibility, however, are mayors, selectmen, and city councillors. Other elected officials, such as city or town clerks, may be included, but only as a result of an affirmative vote by the city council or town meeting.
The workers’ compensation law in Massachusetts (M.G.L. Ch. 152, Sect. 69) states, “The terms laborers, workmen and mechanics … shall, if the city council or the town meeting so votes, also include such elected or appointed officers of the city or town, except the mayor, city councilors, selectmen or members of the police or fire force, as the mayor or board of selectmen may, from time to time, designate, as evidenced by a writing filed with the division.”
Keep in mind that the Massachusetts workers’ compensation law dates back almost a century. Chapter 751 of the Acts of 1911 outlined the historic legislation that helped shape the way employee injuries are handled throughout the nation. Nearly a century later, some municipalities are challenged with finding documentation of votes that may have included coverage for elected officials. In some instances, records of such votes, dating as far back as the 1920s, are simply not available.
Though it is a daunting task, a search of archives is essential in uncovering a city or town’s position on workers’ compensation for elected officials. An alternative is to draft an article for a future town meeting or city council session to clearly define who is eligible. Because most cities and towns have added many new positions in recent decades, now is a good time to take a fresh look at who should be covered by workers’ compensation.
If an elected official in a city or town without an affirmative vote on workers’ compensation is injured on the job, Massachusetts law will take precedence and those claims will likely be denied.
Communities are advised to avoid controversy and potential discord by determining where they stand on this matter before an elected official is injured on the job.
Written by MIIA Member Services Loss Control Manager Bob Marinelli
