6/7/2020 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly and sea voyages during the medieval ages, attended by innumerable hazards and perils. To offset against these adverse conditions and to encourage shipbuilding and maritime commerce, it was deemed necessary to confine the liability of the owner or agent arising from the operation of a ship to the vessel, equipment, and freight, or insurance, if any, so that if the shipowner or agent abandoned the ship, equipment, and freight, his liability was extinguished. But the provisions of the Code of Commerce invoked by appellant have no room in the application of the Workmen's Compensation Act which seeks to improve, and aims at the amelioration of, the condition of laborers and employees. It is not the liability for the damage or loss of the cargo or injury to, or death of, a passenger by or through the misconduct of the captain or master of the ship; nor the liability for the loss of the ship as a result of collision; nor the responsibility for wages of the crew, but a liability created by a statute to compensate employees and laborers in cases of injury received by or inflicted upon them, while engaged in the performance of their work or employment, or the heirs and dependents of such laborers and employees in the event of death caused by their employment. Such compensation has nothing to do with the provisions of the Code of Commerce regarding maritime commerce. It is an item in the cost of production which must be included in the budget of any well-managed industry.[43] (Underscoring supplied.) We see no reason why the above doctrine should not apply here. Act No. 3428, otherwise known as The Workmen's Compensation Act[44] is the first law on workmen's compensation in the Philippines for work-related injury, illness, or death. This was repealed on November 1, 1974 by the Labor Code,[45] and was further amended on December 27, 1974 by Presidential Decree No. 626.[46] The pertinent provisions are now found in Title II, Book IV of the Labor Code on Employees Compensation and State Insurance Fund. The death benefits granted under Title II, Book IV of the Labor Code are similar to the death benefits granted under the POEA-SEC.[47] Specifically, its Section 20(A)(l) and (4)(c) provides that: 1. In case of work-related death of the seafarer, during the term of his contract the employer shall pay his beneficiaries the Philippine Currency equivalent to the amount of Fifty Thousand US dollars (US$50,000) and an additional amount of Seven Thousand US dollars (US$7,000) to each child under the age of twenty-one (21) but not exceeding four (4) children, at the exchange rate prevailing during the time of payment. xxx 4. The other liabilities of the employer when the seafarer dies as a result of work-related injury or illness during the term of employment are as elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/62118 7/18