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EXCEL BOOKS
SOCIAL SECURITY

2. INTRODUCTION ANNOTATED OUTLINE
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ANNOTATED OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
The basic purpose of social security is to protect people of small means from risks (such as accidents, illness, invalidity, disease, old age etc) which impair a person’s ability to support himself and his family.
Social Security

3. Objectives of social security
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Objectives of social security
Social security measures aim at three things
Compensation: Offer financial help when the worker is in a state of physical distress due to accidents, sickness, invalidity, disease, and old age.
Restoration: Enable the worker to recover from the shocks injected by the inhuman industrial work, rehabilitate himself and get on with his work in a usual manner.
Prevention: Extend monetary assistance to workers so that they can get rid of sickness, idleness, disease etc.
Social security benefits are provided in two major ways in India:
Social insurance: In this scheme, a common fund is established with periodical contributions from workers out of which all benefits in cash or kind are paid
Social assistance: In this case, benefits are offered to persons of small means by the government out of its general revenues.
Social Security

4. Social Security in India
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Social Security in India
Social security benefits extended to workers in India may be put under the following heads
Social security benefits in India
Medial care
Sickness benefit in cash
Old age pension or retirement benefits
Invalidity pension
Maternity benefit
Accident benefit
Survivor’s benefit
Social Security

5. The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
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The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923
Welfare facilities could be classified into two categories; Intramural (provided within the establishment) and Extramural (undertaken outside the establishment ).
Intramural and Extramural welfare measures: ILO
The Act aims at compensating the worker adequately in case of injuries or accidents suffered by him during and in course of employment.
Coverage: all workers employed in factories, mines, plantation, transportation, construction works, railways, ships etc; does not apply to casual workers
Administration: the commissions appointed by respective governments
Benefits: three conditions must be met:
There must be an injury
It should be caused in an accident
It must be caused during the course of employment
Assessment: entire liability for compensation is placed on the employer; so many employers in small industry find it difficult to pay the compensation.
Social Security

6. The Employee’s State Insurance Act, 1948
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The Employee’s State Insurance Act, 1948
The ESI Act offers medical help and unemployment insurance to industrial workers during their illness.
Coverage: all factories run with power, employing 20 or more persons drawing less than Rs per month
Administration: ESI Corporation, an autonomous body set by the central government.
Funds: employer contributes 4% of the wage bill and employee contributes 1.5% of his own wages towards the ESI Fund
Benefits: the scheme provides for 5 types of benefits to injured persons through an extensive network of more than 500 centres all over India:
Social Security

7. The Employee’s State Insurance Act, 1948
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The Employee’s State Insurance Act, 1948
Sickness benefits
Maternity benefits
Disablement benefits
Dependents' benefits
Funeral benefits
Assessment: Not popular with unions and employees, as many complain
About inadequacy of facilities and benefits. There is considerable delay
In making payments to workers. Employers often get away without
Making any payments to injured persons
Social Security

8. The Maternity Benefits Act, 1961
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The Maternity Benefits Act, 1961
It provides for payment of maternity benefits to women workers on certain conditions;
Benefits: maternity leave upto 12 weeks; with full wages; additional sum of Rs.25 paid if employer offers no medical care; the women employee, however, must have worked for at least days in 12 preceding months
Assessment: employers discharge women employees on first signs of pregnancy and thereby escape liability; most women employees are ignorant about the provisions of the act, and do not claim benefits.
Social Security

9. The Employees’ Provident Funds And Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
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The Employees’ Provident Funds And Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
The EPF and Miscellaneous Provisions Act offers retirement benefits to workers in the form of provident fund, pension and deposit linked insurance.
Group Insurance
Group life insurance scheme provides insurance cover to several employees working under one employer, as long as they remain in service of that employer.
Social Security

10. An Overview of Social Security Measures In India
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An Overview of Social Security Measures In India
Social security measures have not been able to live up to the expectations of workers in India on account of several reasons.
why social security measures have failed to live up to the promise?
Cover only workers in organised sector.
Does not offer unemployment insurance
Several schemes hare in-built weakness; as a result, the beneficiaries are put to lot of trouble and inconvenience.
Lack of funds, facilities, trained staff to implement the schemes.
There is considerable overlapping of schemes
Most measures are in the nature of social assistance and not social insurance.
Mostly employers have to make contributions.
Social Security