Answer: Identification of work-related injuries is a complex problem in practice. work-related injuries normally include the following circumstances.
The first situation is the most typical work-related injuries, including accidental injuries and occupational diseases that occur in workplaces during work time for work reasons.
The second is accidental injuries on the way related to work, including on the way to and from work on normal routes, or on out-of-office work, or on business trips. Under the Regulations on Work Injury Insurance and the relevant interpretation of the Supreme Court, a traffic accident on the way to or from work is deemed to be a work-related injury if it occurs at a reasonable time and on a reasonable route and the main responsibility is not attributable to the employee.1The Regulations on Work Injury Insurance stipulate that if an employee is injured by a traffic accident that is not their main responsibility on their way to and from work, it shall be recognized as an work-related injury. ¡°On the way to and from work¡± here includes not only commuting between work and residence, employer dormitory, or residence of spouse, parents and child within a reasonable time, but also the way for activities needed for daily work and life within a reasonable time, such as picking up and delivering children to and from work. The Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Administrative Cases of Work injury insurance make it clear that the reasonable route between the place of work and the place of residence of spouses, parents, and child within a reasonable time belongs to ¡°on the way to and from work¡±. For example, an accident occurred to an employee taking a shower in a hotel during a business trip should not be classified as a work-related injury. Although some court decisions strictly limit the situation of work-related injuries on the way to and from work to traffic accidents only,2Sun Mou, Chu Mou and Huoshan County Human Resources and Social Security Bureau Labor and Social Security Administration (Labor, Social Security) First Instance Administrative Judgment Anhui Huoshan County People’s Court Administrative Judgment (2017) Anhui 1525 Line 33 (In this case, the court found that the accident in which an employee was hit by falling rocks on his way to work was not a work-related injury.)some courts, such as the Guangdong Provincial High Court, have extended it in practice to other non-traffic accidents of which the main responsibility is not attributable to the employee. 3Yu Shunying et al. V. Zhuhai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau and other labor and social security reconsideration disputes retrial case, Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Administrative Ruling (2017) No.237. ¡°Zhuhai Municipal People’s Social Bureau investigated the scene of the incident, and combined with existing evidence materials, believed that Yu Shunying accidentally fell down while riding a bicycle. There is no evidence to prove that other parties are responsible for the accident. It is caused by Shunying’s own reasons and does not bear the element of ¡°the employee does not assume main responsibility¡± (of work-related injury on the way from and to work.)¡±
The third is accidents related to workplace reasons, including accidents occurred in rest rooms, dormitories, canteens, and other places, or accidents during preparing or finishing work, violent accidental injuries relevant to work duties, deaths within 48 hours after work from a sudden illness that occurred in the work. 4Civil Judgment of the First Instance of Labor Dispute between Ningxia Branch of Shenzhen Guangtian Group Co., Ltd., Shenzhen Guangtian Group Co., Ltd. and Wang Jinchen Civil Judgment of the People’s Court of Jinfeng District, Yinchuan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (2019) Ning 0106 Min Chu No.956 (In this case, the employee accidentally fell into the fire well on his way back to the dormitory after work and was identified as an work-related injury.)The characteristics of identifying such cases as work-related injuries are that the more the employer controls and manages the site, the closer the incident time is to the work, and the more the reasons are related to the work and unrelated to personal matters, the more likely it is to be identified as work-related injuries. For example, if an employee is injured due to a quarrel for work reasons, as long as the employee is not intentional or not at the main fault, it can generally be identified as work-related injuries.5Labor dispute between Zhongshan Dongcheng Furniture Co., Ltd. and Wang Xiangcai, the second civil judgment of the Intermediate People’s Court of Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province (2021) No.1864. ¡°Wang Xiangcai had a certain fault in his own injury, even if he violated the company rules, as long as he was not intentionally injured himself, violent injuries suffered during work hours and in the workplace due to the action of their duties have been recognized as work-related injuries, and the employee should be treated with work injury insurance entitlements according to law.¡±However, injuries caused by violent crimes committed by others do not necessarily constitute work-related injuries.6Zhang Xiaofeng, Zhang Mou Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Civil Ruling (2017) Guangdong Minshen No. 10110. ¡°But Zhuo Ziping was injured by violent crimes committed by outsiders, not by performing his duties.¡± (In this case, it is impossible to see from the judgment under what specific circumstances the victim case occurred, and it is impossible to judge whether it was due to the action of work duties.)
The fourth type is the special cases of work-related injuries, encomposing injuries suffered for rescue and disaster relief, as well as the recurrence of old work-related injury. Some courts have extended the scope of identifying work-related injuries from rescue and disaster relief to other acts of safeguarding public interests, such as brave acts for justice on the way to work. 7Hengyang Yiluge Liquor Co., Ltd. and Gong Guoyun, Lei Chunyun, Ye Zhengzheng, Gong Mou Labor Dispute Second Instance Civil Judgment Hunan Hengyang Intermediate People’s Court Civil Judgment (2016) Xiang 04 Min Zhong No.24. Gong Mou 1 was on his way home from work at about 2 am. on October 13, 2012. He was identified as an work-related death by Hengyang Human Resources and Social Security Bureau because of his brave act for justice.Recurrence of old work-related injuries, including the ordinary recurrence of old work-related injuries and the recurrence of old injuries of demobilized soldiers, should give rise to the work injury entitlements.8Articles 15 (3) and 36 of the Regulations on Work Injury Insurance.
It should be noted that the employer’s work-related injury liability is a kind of no-fault liability. In general, even if the employee is injured due to the fault of illegal operation of their own, it will not affect the identification of work-related injury. However, according to Article 16 of the Regulations on Work Injury Insurance, if an employee commits a crime or violates the Public Security Administration law, or there is drunkenness, suicide, and other serious acts that cause casualty to the employee, it cannot be recognized as an work-related injury.
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- 1The Regulations on Work Injury Insurance stipulate that if an employee is injured by a traffic accident that is not their main responsibility on their way to and from work, it shall be recognized as an work-related injury. ¡°On the way to and from work¡± here includes not only commuting between work and residence, employer dormitory, or residence of spouse, parents and child within a reasonable time, but also the way for activities needed for daily work and life within a reasonable time, such as picking up and delivering children to and from work. The Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Administrative Cases of Work injury insurance make it clear that the reasonable route between the place of work and the place of residence of spouses, parents, and child within a reasonable time belongs to ¡°on the way to and from work¡±.
- 2Sun Mou, Chu Mou and Huoshan County Human Resources and Social Security Bureau Labor and Social Security Administration (Labor, Social Security) First Instance Administrative Judgment Anhui Huoshan County People’s Court Administrative Judgment (2017) Anhui 1525 Line 33 (In this case, the court found that the accident in which an employee was hit by falling rocks on his way to work was not a work-related injury.)
- 3Yu Shunying et al. V. Zhuhai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau and other labor and social security reconsideration disputes retrial case, Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Administrative Ruling (2017) No.237. ¡°Zhuhai Municipal People’s Social Bureau investigated the scene of the incident, and combined with existing evidence materials, believed that Yu Shunying accidentally fell down while riding a bicycle. There is no evidence to prove that other parties are responsible for the accident. It is caused by Shunying’s own reasons and does not bear the element of ¡°the employee does not assume main responsibility¡± (of work-related injury on the way from and to work.)¡±
- 4Civil Judgment of the First Instance of Labor Dispute between Ningxia Branch of Shenzhen Guangtian Group Co., Ltd., Shenzhen Guangtian Group Co., Ltd. and Wang Jinchen Civil Judgment of the People’s Court of Jinfeng District, Yinchuan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (2019) Ning 0106 Min Chu No.956 (In this case, the employee accidentally fell into the fire well on his way back to the dormitory after work and was identified as an work-related injury.)
- 5Labor dispute between Zhongshan Dongcheng Furniture Co., Ltd. and Wang Xiangcai, the second civil judgment of the Intermediate People’s Court of Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province (2021) No.1864. ¡°Wang Xiangcai had a certain fault in his own injury, even if he violated the company rules, as long as he was not intentionally injured himself, violent injuries suffered during work hours and in the workplace due to the action of their duties have been recognized as work-related injuries, and the employee should be treated with work injury insurance entitlements according to law.¡±
- 6Zhang Xiaofeng, Zhang Mou Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Civil Ruling (2017) Guangdong Minshen No. 10110. ¡°But Zhuo Ziping was injured by violent crimes committed by outsiders, not by performing his duties.¡± (In this case, it is impossible to see from the judgment under what specific circumstances the victim case occurred, and it is impossible to judge whether it was due to the action of work duties.)
- 7Hengyang Yiluge Liquor Co., Ltd. and Gong Guoyun, Lei Chunyun, Ye Zhengzheng, Gong Mou Labor Dispute Second Instance Civil Judgment Hunan Hengyang Intermediate People’s Court Civil Judgment (2016) Xiang 04 Min Zhong No.24. Gong Mou 1 was on his way home from work at about 2 am. on October 13, 2012. He was identified as an work-related death by Hengyang Human Resources and Social Security Bureau because of his brave act for justice.
- 8Articles 15 (3) and 36 of the Regulations on Work Injury Insurance.