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example, in arriving at a decision as to whether or not he should insure under the act. Without going further into detail, this subject may be dismissed by stating that the number of questions which have been passed upon in this way is voluminous.

Yet another very important function of the Board is that by means of which cases are frequently settled by informal conferences. In such cases not the full Board but different Board members meet with the persons interested in a dispute, and attempt to bring them together for the purpose of making somc amicable settlement which is in accordance with the law. Much valuable work has been done in this way in cases where the point in dispute, as a rule, has been caused either by a misunderstanding of the law, or lack of knowledge of certain pertinent facts developed either by the Board or one of the interested persons.

Members of the Board act, in every instance, as chairmen of committees of arbitration formed under the statute. In that capacity they are engaged in hearing cases every day, except the afternoon of Wednesday and all day Thursday of each week, at which time the full Board hears and decides cases on review. Each member of the Board has a conference day weekly at the office, when he does not hear cases formally, except in cases of emergency or necessity. His time during the entire day set aside for conference purposes is filled with engagements pertinent to the administration of the law. In addition to the persons with appointments there is always a waiting list to take advantage of the open-door policy of the Board, through which persons may receive the benefit of the member's aid in the adjustment or solving of cases and problems under the act.

The matters so far considered, on which the Board members act directly, have dealt with compensation problems. Another very important problem is that of accident prevention. This work of the Board falls into four groups.

1. Work in which the Board acts directly through its members in their personal consideration of the problems arising under the statute.

2. Work in which the Board acts through the agency of its

inspectors, who, on the basis of a special study showing the causes of injuries, the wage loss and other valuable data, make an investigation of the conditions which result in injuries, and interest employers in the removal of such conditions.

3. Work in which the Board acts through the co-operation of the inspectors of insurance companies.

4. Work in which the Board acts through the dissemination of literature.

Under chapter 813, Acts of 1913, the Industrial Accident Board is charged with the duty of making investigations of the causes of injuries for which compensation may be claimed; and by reason of the power thus given the Board, appreciable progress has been made in procuring the voluntary co-operation of employers of labor in removing the cause of preventable injuries.

To encourage the organization of safety committees the Board has placed its members at the disposal of any employer, and will, on request, make engagements for the formation of such committees by the members.

The functions of the Industrial Accident Board described up to this point have dealt almost entirely with the direct problems of the act. In addition to this work the Board members must and do devote a certain amount of time to the consideration of problems allied to the act. Also, because of the opportunity for being familiar with all phases of the law, and with the conditions attendant upon the operation of the law, the Board memhers stand in a position where they can be of great service to all who are directly interested in workmen's compensation.

Employers, employees, insurance companies, physicians, attorneys and the public are directly affected, not only by the law as at present developed, but also have a vital interest in the future development of the law. Likewise, other State governments are highly interested in procuring any light on a type of legislation which is comparatively in its infancy in the United States.

Recognizing these facts, the Industrial Accident Board aims to keep in touch with the very latest experience on this subject, and to attack and solve all complex questions which arise in

the course of the work. When expedient, conferences are held with representative men or bodies for the purpose of exchanging views and thereby getting down to a common basis of understanding.

The facts set down in this chapter have been offered for whatever general interest they may have, and also to show in detail the machinery by means of which the Workmen's Compensation Act is administered in Massachusetts. The chart epitomizes the organization and related duties of the Board. The text explains in greater detail the points indicated in this chart.

Below is appended a brief summary of the number of reports of injuries received at the office of the Industrial Accident Board from July 1, 1912, through June 30, 1914. This table also shows other facts regarding the automatic payment of compensation and the number of disputed cases handled.

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Total number of cases heard by Board on review under sec

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Total number of cases heard by Board on review under sec

tion 12, Part III.:

July 1, 1912, to Nov. 30, 1913,

Dec. 1, 1913, to Nov. 30, 1914,

Total number of cases appealed to Supreme Judicial Court:
July 1, 1912, to Nov. 30, 1913,

Dec. 1, 1913, to Nov. 30, 1914,

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Decisions by the Supreme Judicial Court affirming the findings of the Industrial Accident Board from July 1, 1912, to Nov. 30, 1914,

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Decisions reversing findings of the Board, July 1, 1912, to Nov.

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Number of cases before Supreme Judicial Court, and not yet

acted upon,.

28

6

30

THE SECOND YEAR OF THE ACT.

With the completion of the second year under the Massachusetts Workmen's Compensation Act a good deal of interesting and valuable information has been made available both for the purpose of disclosing the operation of the law for the particular year, and also to make facts regarding the workings of the law in the previous year more definite and reliable.

At the outset the Board was confronted with the difficult task of administering the act, with very little, in the way of ade quate experience, by which to be guided. On the basis of the first four months' study embodied in a letter to the Governor, and the experience of the first and second years of the act, the problem has been gradually worked out in the direction of increasing efficiency. The consensus of opinion held by those familiar with the subject shows that the different phases of workmen's compensation become exceedingly complex in the first three or four years following the enactment of such legis‐ lation in a community. In view of this fact the returns for a year, and the possibility for comparisons with the previous year or preceding years, are invaluable for meeting new conditions.

In the period July 1, 1913, to June 30, 1914, there were 96,891 cases of fatal and non-fatal injuries which " arose out of and in the course of employment." The increase in the total number of cases over the previous year is 7.4 per cent.

Of this number, 96,382 cases were non-fatal and 509 cases were fatal. In the year July 1, 1912, to June 30, 1913, there were 89,694 cases of non-fatal injuries and 474 fatal cases. The increase over these figures for the year 1913-14 in the two groups are, respectively, 7.4 and 7.3 per cent.

In addition to the 509 fatalities mentioned above there were 85 fatal cases reported which were not subject in any respect to the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Act.

Other facts pertaining to the 509 persons fatally injured are shown below.

The number insured under the act was 371; the number not so insured was 138; and in these cases the only method for

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