A Tale of Two WCB Accounts
– Rob Dombowsky, Industry Advisor, Human Resources & Labour, AMTA
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
Charles Dickens – A Tale of Two Cities
This quote easily applies to employers in Canada when it comes to comparing their safety performance and in the end, their WCB premiums. For some, it is indeed the best of times. Through good policy and practice, they reduce their premium costs significantly, by up to 60%. For others, it may be the worst of times, as they could be paying up to 260% more than the average employer.
An effective and comprehensive health and safety program is the first step towards effectively managing WCB claims. It is the proactive, preventative approach that in the ideal situation would prevent most injuries from ever happening, therefore reducing the number of WCB claims. That said, not every incident is preventable by the employer or worker if someone is acting with malicious intent.
In general the number of WCB claims, is a lagging indicator. In other words, for most injuries reported to WCB, the employer already has a documented failure of the health and safety system. Each claim provides a metric to support a failure of the system but says nothing about the near misses and incidents that were never reported to WCB.
Case 1: An Uncontrolled Approach to Workplace Injuries
ABC Haulers Ltd. is a small company with about eleven employees. In 2021, its average claims cost was 50% above the industry average due to several claims, including four recent lost-time claims. In each case, the workers hurt themselves at work and called in sick the next day saying they tweaked something and would be back in a few days.
In each case, the workers missed a few days and then went to their family Doctor when the injury did not get better. The workers told their doctors that their injury was workplace-related and that they did not think they could go to work until the condition resolved itself. The doctors agreed and gave each of them a few weeks. The time off ballooned, and they missed about 6-10 weeks of work.
In 2021, their Industry Claims Costs were $90,000, while the Industry Average was $60,000 resulting in a 50% surcharge. With assessable earnings of $800,000, their premiums worked out to $52,200 for the year. In addition, they did not hold COR, so were not eligible for a PIR rebate of up to $6920.
Case 2: A Managed Approach to Workplace Injuries
XYZ Carriers Inc. employs eleven employees and is sitting 50% below the industry average. In 2020, they had 5 workplace injuries, however, the workers reported their injuries to the HR Manager on the same day as the injury occurred. The workers were offered modified duties for a two week period and were reminded of their duty to cooperate. The workers were asked to accept or decline and sign off on the offer of modified duties.
The HR manager then offered to arrange a doctor’s appointment with the Occupational Injury Service (OIS) clinic on the same day. With the appointment booked, the workers were seen on the same day of the injury. The following morning, the HR manager finalized the offer of modified duties based on the feedback from the doctor and had the workers sign off once again.
The HR manager also worked closely with the Claims Manager from WCB. She ensured that she sent all the supporting paperwork to WCB and followed up with a few timely calls. She was also diligent in taking notes and documenting discussions with the workers, ensuring that she sent follow up emails after every conversation, copying the worker. This provided a paper trail showing due diligence.
One worker declined and decided to take 2 weeks off and recover at his Cabin, choosing to use his vacation over doing modified duties. This was cleared with the WCB case manager before he left. The others came to work and performed their modified duties. As a result, there were zero lost-time claims from their injuries.
In 2021, their Industry Claims Costs were $30,000, while the Industry Average was $60,000 resulting in a maximum discount of 50%. With assessable earnings of $800,000, their premiums worked out to $17,400 for the year.
In addition, if XYZ is a Certificate of Recognition (COR) holder, the employer would receive an additional Partnerships in Injury Reduction (PIR) rebate of $3480 if they qualified for a 10% rebate.
Table 1: Premiums Comparison
Comparison
When looking at the two companies, we are comparing them at realistic performance levels an not at the extreme ends of the spectrum. The maximum overall discount under Industry Custom Pricing could be up to 60% based on the employer’s performance and an additional 20% rebate for PIR. On the opposite end of the spectrum the maximum surcharge could be 60% plus up to an additional 200% poor performance surcharge. In either case the table above shows a difference of $31,320 between ABC and XYZ. The example of 123 Corp. shows the impact of breaking even, which would be a difference of $17,400.
How to Lower Your Premiums?
Reducing premiums is a challenge but it can be very advantageous for an employer. Every dollar saved on premiums, will translate into an additional dollar in profit. With that savings the company can use the money to pay for other projects such as implementing a safety program, joining the AMTA, getting your COR or investing in employee training.
At the end of the day reducing premiums starts with working safely and therefore having a suitable safety program. That will lead to the greatest savings over time, through the reduction of injuries, property damage and downtime. However, as mentioned above, WCB is in most cases, a reaction to the failure of the health and safety program or the absence of one.
Alberta Motor Transport Association
Since 1938, the Alberta Motor Transport Association and its members have advanced the commercial transportation industry through safety programs, progressive policy and partnerships. Our association is available to help you develop a safety program and transition into COR. We provide guidance and support around all aspects of compliance, safety, human resources, industry training and effective lobbying to all levels of government for our industry.
Occupational Injury Services
Occupational Injury Service (OIS) is designed to connect injured workers with fast access to medical professionals who specialize in work-related injuries. This service can help you to significantly improve recovery rates for your workers, lower claim costs and decrease your premiums.
Modified Duties
You can help your injured worker return to work while he or she is recovering by offering temporarily adjusted duties or modified duties. Injured workers can be assigned training, office work or specific suitable projects based on their limitations. One company assigned an injured worker to price out a new trailer, another was asked to take a safety course through AMTA. There are numerous options available when it comes to modified duties.
SECOR/COR Certification
Small Employer Certificate of Recognition (SECOR)/Certificate of Recognition (COR) is awarded to employers who have developed health and safety programs that meet standards established by the Ministry of Labour and Immigration and an accredited certifying partner. To achieve a COR, you must get at least 50% on each element of an audit and have an overall score of 80%.
Partnerships in Injury Reduction
Partnerships in Injury Reduction (PIR) is a voluntary program that operates through the combined efforts of the Workers’ Compensation Board – Alberta, the Ministry of Labour, industry partners, safety associations and employers. By joining the PIR program and developing effective health and safety management systems, in conjunction with COR, you can earn up to 20% off your industry rate. Learn more about the program and how to enroll.
Our Services
AMTA can provide members with one-on-one guidance on the information provided in this article. If you have any questions, please contact AMTA and our experienced staff will be happy to help. For your WCB, Safety, Compliance or Human Resources questions, or for more information on how to reduce your WCB premiums, please email Member Services at memberservices@amta.ca.