17. Liability of principals
Feedback & supportLast amended by an amending law of 2008.
Where any person (referred to in this section as the principal) in the course of or for the purpose of his trade or business contracts with any other person (referred to in this section as the employer) for the execution by the employer of the whole or any part of any work, or for the supply of labour to carry out any work, undertaken by the principal, the principal shall be liable to pay to any employee employed in the execution of the work any compensation which he would have been liable to pay if that employee had been immediately employed by him.
employer
“employer” includes —(a)the Government;(b)any statutory body or authority;(c)the legal personal representative of a deceased employer; and(d)in relation to a person employed for the purpose of any game or recreation and engaged or paid through a club, the manager or members of the managing committee of that club,and where the services of an employee are temporarily lent or let on hire to another person by the person with whom the employee has entered into a contract of service or apprenticeship, the latter shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to continue to be the employer of the employee whilst he is working for that other person;
For the purposes of this section, the Commissioner shall, in his discretion and notwithstanding any claim by the employee, determine that a claim for compensation be made, or a recovery of compensation be obtained, against the principal or the employer.
Commissioner
“Commissioner” means the Commissioner for Labour appointed under section 3 of the Employment Act;
Where a claim has been determined by the Commissioner to be made against the principal for compensation under subsection (1), this Act shall apply as if references to the principal were substituted for references to the employer, except that the amount of compensation shall be calculated with reference to the wages of the employee under the employer by whom he is immediately employed.
employee
“employee” means any person who has entered into or works under a contract of service or apprenticeship with an employer, whether —(a)by way of manual labour or otherwise;(b)the contract is express or implied or is oral or in writing; and(c)the remuneration is calculated by time or by work done,but does not include any class of persons specified in the Fourth Schedule;
Where the principal is liable to pay compensation under this section, he shall be entitled to be indemnified by the person who would have been liable to pay compensation to the employee independently of this section.
Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing the Commissioner from ordering the compensation under this Act to be recovered from the employer instead of the principal, and a claim so determined by the Commissioner to be made against a principal or an employer, as the case may be, shall not bar subsequent proceedings under this Act against the other to recover so much of the compensation as may remain unpaid.
This section shall not apply in any case where the accident occurred elsewhere than at or about the place where the principal has undertaken to execute work or which is under his control or management.