The Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC) recently granted EC temporary total disability (TTD) benefits and reimbursement of medical expenses to Arnel V. Mariano for his work-connected knee injury.

Mariano, a 47 year-old resident of Caloocan City, has suffered a knee-injury while employed as a chief cook by Scanmar Maritime Services, Inc. in Makati City.

Due to severe pain on his injured knee, he was advised for repatriation.

Upon returning to the Philippines, he filed a claim for EC temporary total disability (TTD) benefits with the Social Security System (SSS).  The SSS ruled against Mariano’s claim stating that his condition was considered pre-existing considering that he underwent a ligament operation on the same knee prior to the accident.

The ECC reversed the decision of the SSS.

According to ECC, there was a failure on the part of the SSS to consider the fact that the knee injury was sustained while Mariano was performing his duty onboard the vessel. It was the responsible cause that leads to the manifestation of his claimed illness. It was also established that there was neither misconduct nor negligence on the part of the claimant. Thus, it was the performance of his duties that caused the injury, and therefore, it is compensable under the EC Program.

Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC) is an attached agency of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) whose mandate is to provide a meaningful and appropriate compensation to workers in the event of work-related contingencies.

EC claims for sickness or injury resulting in disability or death are filed at the SSS for the private sector and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) for the public sector.