Firm failed to compensate non-manual worker for injury

In a first here, an employer has been taken to court for failing to pay work injury compensation to an employee who does not do manual labour.

Marketing and communications firm Lyon & Dianzi was fined $8,000 on Thursday, said the Manpower Ministry (MOM) yesterday. Mr Kumarawatte Dharshana Sanjeewa, who was a senior art director, fell down a flight of stairs in the two-storey shophouse office in 2012 and dislocated his right shoulder.

Lyon & Dianzi was ordered to pay $18,262.64 for medical leave wages and medical expenses.

In June last year, the company was ordered to pay another $21,800 to Mr Sanjeewa as he suffered 10 per cent permanent incapacity due to torn cartilage in his right shoulder. However, it failed to pay both amounts.

MOM prosecuted Lyon & Dianzi under the Work Injury Compensation Act (Wica), which states that employers are liable to pay compensation if there is a valid claim filed by workers, even those in non-manual roles, who are injured during their work.

The cases prosecuted under Wica for non-payment of compensation typically involve construction and marine workers.

It is not mandatory for employers to buy insurance to cover their liability under Wica for non-manual workers earning more than $1,600 a month but they are encouraged to, said MOM's work injury compensation department director, Ms Kee Ee Wah, in a statement.

The Straits Times understands that Lyon & Dianzi is winding up. Calls to its office were answered by another firm, though the business is still registered as "live" with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.

Joanna Seow

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 14, 2015, with the headline Firm failed to compensate non-manual worker for injury. Subscribe