Section 15. There is hereby established an advisory council on workers' compensation in this chapter and in chapter one hundred and fifty-two called the advisory council to be appointed by the governor. The voting membership of said council shall be composed of five members representing employers in the commonwealth, at least one of whom shall represent manufacturing classifications, at least one of whom shall represent small business, at least one of whom shall represent contracting classifications, and at least one of whom shall represent self-insurers, and five members representing employees, all of whom shall be members of a duly recognized and independent employee organization, council, or union, and at least one of whom shall be a disabled worker. At least one employer representative shall be from a list of nominees provided by Associated Industries of Massachusetts. At least one employee representative shall be from a list of nominees provided by the Massachusetts AFL–CIO. The governor shall also appoint one member representing the insurance industry, the workers' compensation claimants' bar, one member representing the commonwealth's medical providers, and one member representing vocational rehabilitation providers, none of whom shall be voting members. The secretary of labor and workforce development and the director of economic development shall be ex officio, nonvoting members. Any person appointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term of his predecessor shall be appointed for the unexpired portion of such term. The chairman and the vice-chairman of such advisory council, one of whom shall be an employee representative and one of whom shall be an employer representative, shall be appointed from among voting members by the governor for two year terms. Such appointees shall not succeed themselves as chairman or vice-chairman. No member of said advisory council shall be subject to chapter thirty-one. Members shall receive their traveling and other necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. Such expenses shall be paid from the special fund established in section sixty-five of chapter one hundred and fifty-two. Meetings of said advisory council shall be called by the chairman or upon petition by a majority of voting members. Such meetings shall be subject to the provisions of section eleven A1/2 of chapter thirty A. Said advisory council shall take no action pursuant to its authority under this chapter or said chapter one hundred and fifty-two unless a quorum of its voting members are present.

The presence of seven voting members of the advisory council, at least two of whom shall be representatives of employees, shall constitute a quorum. No action shall be taken by the advisory council without the affirmative vote of at least seven members.