<P> For the history of worker's compensation in the UK, see Workmen's Compensation Act 1897 and following acts . </P> <P> In 1855, Georgia and Alabama passed Employer Liability Acts; 26 other states passed similar acts between 1855 and 1907 . Early laws permitted injured employees to sue the employer and then prove a negligent act or omission . (A similar scheme was set forth in Britain's 1880 Act .) </P> <P> The first statewide workers' compensation law was passed in Maryland in 1902, and the first law covering federal employees was passed in 1906 . (See: FELA, 1908; FECA, 1916; Kern, 1918 .) By 1949, every state had enacted a workers' compensation program . </P> <P> At the turn of the 20th century workers' compensation laws were voluntary . An elective law made passage easier and some argued that compulsory workers' compensation laws would violate the 14th amendment due process clause of the U.S. Constitution . Since workers' compensation mandated benefits without regard to fault or negligence, many felt that compulsory participation would deprive the employer of property without due process . The issue of due process was resolved by the United States Supreme Court in 1917 in New York Central Railway Co. v. White which held that an employer's due process rights were not impeded by mandatory workers' compensation . After the ruling many states enacted new compulsory workers' compensation laws . </P>

First workers' compensation law in the united states