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THE B.C. LUMBER WORKER

December 20, 1943

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Joe Workman Gets Wise To Hernia

A Fable(?) by BERT MARCUSE, - Director Pacific Coast Labor Bureau

Joe Workman is just a worker like any other guy with a wife and a couple of kids to fed. He works on the bull gang in a sawmill
(or for that matter he might be a hooktender or a faller in a logging camp). For over a year now, day in and day out, he’s been handling

heavy material.

One day Joe slips over a rope while carrying an awkard and heavy beam. He feels a sudden and slightly painful tug on the stomach

or groin muscles. The pain

is only momentary and subsides into a dull ache.

Joe curses everything in general for a few seconds, feels better, and carries on without further trouble. It’s all part of the job. This isn’t
the first time Joe’s hurt his guts and it won't be the last. ;

That night he complains to the wife that some so-and-so left a rope hanging around that he tripped on and made him strain his
stomach. He examines his abdomen but nothing seems wrong and the pain is barely perciptible. The next day Joe is on the job again with
hardly a memory of the previous day’s hurt. It feels a little tender to be sure but he figures in another day or two it will all wear off,

Three days later Joe Work-?

man hardly feels the slight
ache in his stomach wall. It
does not interfere in any way
with his usual heavy work.
That night, on his way up the
stairs to his suite, he suddenly

sneezes — and zing! — a pain
like a red hot knife sears
through his abdomen. He

doubles over and screams for
his wife who helps him into bed.

It doesn’t take the doctor to let
him know he has & hernia,

A week later Joe sends in a re-
port to the Compensation Board
asking them for compensation in
conformity with Article 7 (1) of
the Act, which states:

“Where, in any industry” within
the scope of this Part, personal
injury by accident arising out of
and in the course of the employ-
ment is caused to a workman, com-
pensation as provided by this shall
be paid by the Board out of the
Accident Fund.” :

“Well,” answers the Board, “since
we do not recognize hernia as an
indnstria]. diserse you'll have to
show us that you fulfill all the
requirements of Article 15 of the
Act which states:

“No compensation shall be pay-
able in respect of hernia, unless:

(a) It is clinical hernia of dis-
abling character and of recent pri-
mary demonstrability; and

(b) The onset thereof can be
shown to have been immediately
preceded by accident; and

(c) It is shown that at the time
of the occurence of the accident
the workman immediately reported
his condition to his employer or
ceased work at the time and re-
ported within seventy-two hours
of so ceasing work; and (d) an
operation to effect a cure is per-
formed within two weeks of the
occurrence if such operation is
deemed surgically advisable:

Provided that in case there has
been excusable failure on the part
of the workman to comply with
the provisions of this section the
Board may pay compensation if
it is of the opinion that the claim
in justice should be allowed, but
no compensation shall be payable
for a period greater than seven

309 Carral St.

dals prior to the date of an opera- get a tough break like me—it does-
tion to effect a cure or for more n’t hurt much, nobody’s around—
than forty-two days thereafter for and anyway you don’t know it’s a
uncomplicated hernia.” hernia. Well, as soon as you find

“J don’t know just exactly what out it is a sure fired hernia just
that all means in ordinary English,” don’t open your trap obout it to
answers Joe, “but I know the doc. anyone, not even the wife. Go
who looked after me knows, and I back on the job and wait until
know danged well I got a hernia!” you see a bunch of guys working
So then Joe Workman has to | around a crane piling lumber. Then

prove:

1. That he got his hernia as the
result of a specific accident. He
explains that he knows exactly
when it happened but admits that
he had no witnesses to the acci-
dent, did not report it immediately,
didn’t lay off work immediately.
“In fact,” says Joe, “I didn’t know
I had a hernia until four days
latér.” Looks bad for you,” says
the Compensation Board, “how do
we know you didn’t have the her-
nia before you even came to work
in the shipyards and just: want to
put one over on us to get a free
operation?”

So Joe Workman gets no com-
pensation because the hernia did-
n't appear at the very moment of
the accident and because he neg-
lected to fall screaming to the
ground in front of a dozen wit-
nesses and his foreman. The union
fights the decision but it does no
good. *

Well, maybe Joe Workman pays
for his own operation or perhaps
he buys a truss. Anyway when
he gets back on the job a few
weeks later the first thing he does
is start handing out free advice
to the boys.

“Listen, boys,” he says, “I’m an

when it gets low enough, run into
‘it and bump it like hell with your
“stomach. Then you grab your guts:
‘and fall down screaming blue mur-
der and yelling for the super. and
the doc. They cart you off to the
hospital and everything’s hunky-
dory, ‘cause you’ve lived up to
all the conditions of Article 15 A!
Boys, I’m telling you straight, it’s
the only way!”

| Postscript.

; man

Of course Joe Work-
is not a real person—but
many readers will have no diffi-
culty identifying themselves or a
fellow-worker with Joe Workman.
This little story shows how the
Workmen’s Compensation Act of
British Columbia, and for that mat-
ter, every province. in Canada, vir-
tually forces workers into becom-
ing downright plotters. At least,
that is the case insofar as that
portion of the Act dealing with
hernia is concerned. And it isn’t
because the worker wants to man-
oeuvre. Far from it. But they
are forced to resort to unpleasant
subterfuges out of sheer necessity.
It may be the only posible way
in which to get compensation to
which they consider themselves en-
titled—and to which they almost
invariably are entitled.

expert on hernia compensation| That is why the Shipyard Un-
now, see! I know just what the ,ion Conference and certain other
Act means, especially that part trade unions have retained the
that says you can't get no com- Pacific Coast Labor Bureau to pre-
pensation for rupture unless ‘it Pare a study on the Compensa-
is clinical hernia of disabling char-, tion Act in respect to hernia. This

acter and of recent primary de-,Brief will be the basis for a de-
monstrability, and the onset there-, Mand to the Provincial House this

of can be shown to have been (January by the Trade Unions that
F ceeded by acci-|they revise the Act to provide for
adequate and proper compensa-
tion for hernia.

The Brief of the Pacific Coast
Labor Bureau which is now in
preparation will set out to prove

immediately pro
dent’” After the boys quit kidd-
ing Joe about that mouthful he
goes on, “Well, like I was telling
you guys, I got it all doped out.
Here’s how it goes—Supposing you

Rainier Hotel

CHAS. V. ROWAN, PROP.
TRANSIENT and RESIDENTIAL

PHONE PAcific 0656

certain things. Convictions alone,
no matter how justifiable, cannot
make a case. The Bureau pro-
poses, by comparison, citations,
statements of unbiased authoroi-
ties and statistical data, to show:

(1) That war-time industry has
brought about a greater incidence
of hernia.

(2) That greater incidence in
hernia has not resulted in a cor-
responding increase in preventa-
tive or curative work or in compen-
jSation paid in respect to hernia.

Vancouver, B.C.

Hf PDA DDADMIN

(3) That in certain instances; (5) That hernias which are grad-
outside of B. C. compensation laws ual in onset should be compen-
in respect to hernia are more lib-/sible. Widespread legal and med-
eral. ical testimony will be offered in

(4) That hernia solely as the support of. this contention.
immediate result of a specific ac-] (6) That the workers should be
cident is rare compared to hernias entitled to the right of appeal b:
which are gradual in onset and fore a specially chosen panel
therefore not compensable. doctors.

Island Film Circuit

American soldiers establish a beach head on a Pacific Island in
spite of Japanese resistance. Attack Signal, featured on the current
program of the Vancouver Island Industrial Circuit is a forceful fast-
paced story. In dramatic sequence, it shows how the equipment, in
this case a “walkie-talkie’—which is pouring out of war plants and
factories must pass the exacting test of battle. Alaska’s Silver Millions
on the same program, is a most satisfying film on the Yukon area and
will prove instructive and interesting to Island audiences. Another
National Film Boar drelease, Canadian Mail, which will also be in-
cluded, outlines the work of the Canadian Post Office. The schedule
is as follows:

MONDAY, JANUARY 3:

Paldi, 12:25 noon—Community Hall.

Youbou, 8:00 p.m.—Community Hall (Large).
TUESDAY, JANUARY 4:

Cowichan Lake, 8:00 p.m—Community Hall.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5:

‘Youbou, Camp 6, 7:30 p.m.—Cook House.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 6:

Youbou, Camp 3, 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.—Cook house.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 7:

Rounds, 7:00 p.m.—Cook House.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 9:

Cumberland, 8:00 p.m.—Community’ Hall.
MONDAY, JANUARY 10:

Union Bay, 7:30 p.m—Community Hall.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 11:

Headquarters, 7:00 p.m—Community Hall.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12:

Bloedel, Menzies Bay Camp, 7:30 p.m—Cook
THURSDAY, JANUARY 13:

Quinsam, Camp 8, 6:30 p.m—Cook House.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 14:

Quinsam, Camp 9, 7:00 p.m—Cook House.
SATURDAY, JANUARY

House.

Campbell River, 8:00 p.m.—c. R, Pavilion.