Where an employee in this State sustains injury to health or death by reason of a disease contracted or sustained in the course of the employment and proximately caused by the negligence of the employer, unless such employer shall be subject to this Act under the provisions of paragraph (a) of Section 2 of this Act or shall have elected to provide and pay compensation as provided in Section 2 of this Act, a right of action shall accrue to the employee whose health has been so injured for any damages sustained thereby; and in case of death, a right of action shall accrue to the widow or widower of such deceased person, his or her lineal heirs or adopted children, or to any person or persons who were, before such loss of life, dependent for support upon such deceased person, for a like recovery of damages for the injury sustained by reason of such death not to exceed the sum of $10,000. Violation by any employer of any effective rule or rules made pursuant to the Health and Safety Act or the Occupational Safety and Health Act, or violation by the employer of any statute of this State, intended for the protection of the health of employees shall be and constitute negligence of the employer within the meaning of this Section. Every such action for damage for injury to the health shall be commenced within 3 years after the last day of the last exposure to the hazards of the disease and every such action for damages in case of death shall be commenced within one year after the death of such employee and within 5 years after the last day of the last exposure to the hazards of the disease except where the disease is caused by atomic radiation, in which case, every action for damages for injury to health shall be commenced within 15 years after the last day of last exposure to the hazard of such disease and every action for damages in case of death shall be commenced within one year after the death of such employee and within 15 years after last exposure to the hazards of the disease. In any action to recover damages under this Section, it shall not be a defense that the employee either expressly or impliedly assumed the risk of the employment, or that the contraction or sustaining of the disease or death was caused in whole or in part by the negligence of a fellow servant or fellow servants, or that the contraction or sustaining of the disease or death resulting was caused in whole or in part by the contributory negligence of the employee, where such contributory negligence was not wilful.