The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) has approved the 2024 average employer premium rate to remain unchanged from the 2023 rate of $1.28 per hundred dollars of payroll.
“The primary drivers of the 2024 premium rate are claim costs and payroll,” said Gord Dobrowolsky, WCB’s chair. “The average premium rate this year will not increase, however we are expecting total costs to continue to rise in the future. This could place upward pressure on premium rates. The WCB’s rate model ensures a balance between stable rates and a fully funded compensation system.”
In 2022, 90 per cent of employers achieved zero injuries and zero fatalities. The WCB is working to support workers and employers across the province to prioritize and effectively manage workplace safety. Currently, serious injuries account for the majority of claim costs within the workers’ compensation system. Approximately 10 to 13 per cent of claims result in more than 80 per cent of costs.
The WCB has a legislative obligation to remain fully funded. In response to changing accounting standards, the WCB has finalized a comprehensive review of the funding policy. The funding policy has been superseded by the sufficiency policy, which measures funding adequacy in a different way. The sufficiency policy reconfirms the WCB’s commitment to hold sufficient funds to balance long-term obligations to workers and employers.
“To help reduce volatility in premium rates under the new accounting standards, the WCB’s sufficiency policy targets a range of between 100 and 140 per cent funded to cover the costs of current and future claims,” said Phillip Germain, the WCB’s CEO. “The 2024 rate ensures we will be able to maintain our funded position.”
Employers can help prevent work-related injuries through effective safety management systems. By working together, all stakeholders can prevent disability through effective rehabilitation and return-to-work plans can help employers reduce claim costs and manage work-related injuries. By reducing the number and severity of injuries in the workplace, industry premium rates will be positively impacted. Employers and the WCB can work collaboratively to develop safety management systems and return-to-work programs to help prevent and manage work-related injuries.
To further support workers and employers, WorkSafe Saskatchewan, the partnership between the WCB and the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, launched the 2023-2028 Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy in March of this year. The updated strategy, built on the success of the 2019-2021 strategy, focuses on two key streams of work that will be undertaken to reduce injuries and fatalities – a regulatory and enforcement stream, and a prevention and learning stream. The strategy lays out a direction for working together with stakeholders, including non-profit safety associations, to address high-risk industries and occupations that are resulting in workplace fatalities and injuries.
“The WCB will continue to work closely with employers, workers and health-care providers to support the prevention of work disability through collaborative planning,” said Dobrowolsky. “As we head into 2024, we continue our commitment to eliminate workplace fatalities and injuries in the workplace. It is only together that we will achieve this vision.”
At the end of May, the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) shared its 2022 results at its annual general meeting (AGM), held in Saskatoon. The WCB’s CEO, Phillip Germain, and members of the WCB’s executive team also provided attendees with an overview of the WCB’s financial, strategic and operating highlights, including 2022 workplace injuries and fatalities statistics.
The WCB has remained in a fully funded position at 114.8 per cent in 2022, an increase from 107.6 per cent in 2021. The improvement in the funded position is primarily related to the reduction in the benefits liability, based on changing claim cost experience compared to expectations, and changes in actuarial methods and assumptions. This position ensures that the organization has the capacity to cover the future costs of all claims in the system.
“Maintaining a strong funding position is vital to support injured workers in our province through benefits and programs to help restore their abilities,” said Germain. “A solid funding position also provides employers with the confidence that their needs will be met, as we strive toward enhancing our efficiencies and customer experience.”
In March 2023, WorkSafe Saskatchewan, the partnership between the WCB and the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, launched a new strategy that focuses on two key streams of work that will be undertaken to reduce injuries and fatalities – a regulatory and enforcement stream, and a prevention and learning stream. Building on the success of the initial strategy launched in 2019, the new strategy lays out a direction for working together with stakeholders to address high-risk industries and occupations that are resulting in workplace fatalities and injuries.
“Without question, we must continue to work together to make all workplaces in Saskatchewan safe,” said Germain. “Working with our stakeholders – including employers, unions, researchers and associations – the updated Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy will guide us in our efforts to bring injury rates down. We will continue to work with our partners to enhance our workers’ compensation system and to ensure that every Saskatchewan worker returns home safely at the end of each workday.”
For more information on these results, the WCB’s 2022 annual report is available online at wcbsask.com.
The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) remained fully funded within the targeted range in 2022, which means it can cover the future costs of all claims in the system.
“Under The Workers’ Compensation Act, 2013, the WCB is legislated to have sufficient funds in our injury fund to cover current and future claim costs for injured workers. The range protects against unexpected claim activity or fluctuating economic conditions,” said WCB chair Gord Dobrowolsky. “This includes providing benefits and assistance such as earnings loss, physical and vocational rehabilitation, prevention initiatives and other obligations under the Act.”
The WCB remains fully funded, which means it remained within the targeted funding percentage range of 105 per cent to 120 per cent in 2022. The funding policy is currently under review to align with new accounting standards that will be effective for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2023.
The WCB also reported that the 2023 employer premium rates increased to $1.28, a five-cent increase from the 2022 rate of $1.23.
Financial highlights of the WCB’s 2022 results included:
Claim costs were $189.4 million in 2022, down from $336.2 million in 2021.
The WCB’s injury fund was at $436.0 million as of year-end 2022, compared to $549.4 million in 2021.
The WCB had premium revenues of $304.0 million in 2022 (up from $259.5 million in 2021) and an investment loss of $132.1 million in 2022 (compared to investment income of $254.1 million in 2021). Investment losses includes realized investment income of $98.0 million less $5.4 million for investment expenses, less a $230.1 million decrease in unrealized investment gains for the year.
The WCB covered 400,392 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers in 2022, compared to 392,813 in 2021.
Last year, the WCB advanced the second year of the major corporate initiative, the Business Transformation Program, which is a $150-million, multi-year investment. Through this initiative, the WCB is engaging customers, partners and WCB staff in this multi-year journey to implement the changes that it believes are necessary to meet customers’ expectations now and into the future.
“Our program involves improving customers’ experience and outcomes, updating, replacing or introducing new technologies, and improving our processes and approach to service delivery,” said WCB CEO Phillip Germain. “The ongoing transformation of our organization enables us to further enhance our business functions and better respond to the needs of our customers, who are the workers and employers of Saskatchewan.”
To support the WCB’s vision to eliminate injuries and restore abilities, the organization promotes workplace safety and injury prevention for workers and employers across the province.
“While we’ve seen some improvements in our injury rates over the last decade, there is still more for all of us to do,” said Germain.
Injury data highlights in 2022 included:
In 2022, 90 per cent of Saskatchewan workplaces reported zero injuries or fatalities for the third year in a row. Last year, 39 workplace fatalities were reported, up from 31 in 2021.
The workplace total injury rate in 2022 decreased to 4.33 injuries per 100 workers, representing a five per cent decrease from the 2021 total injury rate of 4.56 per 100 workers.
The 2022 Time Loss injury rate increased to 2.04 injuries per 100 workers, up 0.49 per cent from the 2021 rate of 2.03 injuries per 100 workers.
For a more detailed look at last year’s results, the WCB’s 2022 annual report is available at wcbsask.com/corporate-plans-and-annual-reports prior to its annual general meeting on May 30.
In 2019, WorkSafe Saskatchewan, a partnership between the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) and the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, launched the first three year Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy in an effort to help eliminate workplace fatalities and serious injuries.
In March, a new five-year strategy launched that focuses on two key streams of work that will be undertaken to reduce injuries and fatalities – a regulatory and enforcement stream, and a prevention and learning stream.
“Workplace safety is everyone’s responsibility,” Labour Relations and Workplace Safety Minister Don Morgan said. “This new strategy continues to make working with stakeholders to eliminate workplace injuries and fatalities in our province a priority. Everyone deserves to come home safely at the end of the day.”
“Collaboration with stakeholders is critical to bringing our injury rate down,” WCB board chair Gord Dobrowolsky said. “Building on the work of the last strategy, we will continue to engage workers and employers in finding ways to keep all workers safe on the job.” Under this strategy, the three main priority workplace sectors of focus are:
Health care
Transportation
Construction
These industries were chosen due to the high-risk nature of their work. Approximately 2,400 Saskatchewan workers are seriously injured each year in Saskatchewan. Copies of the 2023-2028 Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy are available at www.worksafesask.ca.
The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) has approved the 2023 average employer premium rate of $1.28 per hundred dollars of payroll. This is an increase of 4.1 per cent from the 2022 rate of $1.23.
“Although we have increased our 2023 average premium rate by five cents, our rate is still among the lowest rates in Canada,” said the WCB’s chair, Gord Dobrowolsky. “The primary drivers of the 2023 premium rate are claim costs and payroll. We are continuing to see increasing long-term claim costs, which we are forecasting to rise at a faster rate than employer payrolls in 2023. This is reflected in our premium rates.”
For the past two years during the COVID-19 pandemic, the WCB adjusted the average premium rate to help lift pressure on employers. The 2022 average premium rate was $1.23, below the required rate of $1.25, and the 2021 average premium rate was held at $1.17, below the required rate of $1.23. By not charging the required premium rate in 2021 and 2022, employers saved $14.0 million in 2021, and they are expected to save another $4.8 million in 2022.
“We are legally required to be fully funded. The WCB’s funding policy indicates a range of between 105 per cent and 120 per cent funded to cover the costs of current and future claims,” said the WCB’s CEO Phillip Germain. “The 2023 rate increase ensures we will be able to maintain our funded position.”
Industry premium rates are affected by the extent to which employers in an industry can eliminate workplace injuries. Employers who have a fully functioning safety management system and a solid return-to-work program can help prevent and manage work-related injuries.
In 2021, 90 per cent of employers achieved zero injuries and zero fatalities. The WCB has been advising employers over the last several years that Saskatchewan premium rates could increase if serious injuries, fatalities and claim durations did not improve. From 2015 to 2021, serious injuries accounted for 11.0 per cent of injuries and 82.4 per cent of costs in Saskatchewan’s workers’ compensation system.
“Collaboration with our stakeholders is critical to understanding industry needs and delivering sustainable injury prevention outcomes. By working together, we can help bring our injury rates down and keep all workers safe on the job,” said Dobrowolsky. “As we head into 2023, let’s strengthen our efforts to complete our work on time, on budget with no injuries.”
In the month of June, the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) will be reaching out to customers across the province to gather feedback to help improve WCB services.
The information provided by customers will be vital in improving the WCB’s services over the short and long term. As customers experience these services from a different perspective, we will be seeking input from injured workers and employers at all touchpoints of their experience with us.
This information will be used in the development of a customer feedback system that will help us in the future to gather feedback at the most critical points of the customer journey. We will be looking for customers to tell us about their experience with the WCB, both positive and negative. We will be asking about the points in the WCB process that are most difficult for customers. Customer feedback is essential in our ability to be able to improve our services for our customers. A survey will be sent out to customers via email on June 21, 2021. This email will come from the askwcb@wcbsask.com email account.
A random sampling of customers will also be contacted by our research partner CSPN between June 14, 2021 and June 25, 2021. This group of customers will be offered the opportunity to participate in a set of focus groups. Please be aware that the WCB will never ask for personal information such as a claim number, bank information, payment status, SIN or any other personal identification or financial information when conducting customer research.
If you have any questions about whether or not an email or call was legitimate, please do not hesitate to contact our office at askwcbsask@wcbsask.com or 1-800-667-7590.
The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) understands that it’s not always easy to navigate the workers’ compensation system. Representatives at the WCB’s new Employer Resource Centre are your point of contact to answer questions, guide you to the right information, provide support materials and connect you with the right person at the WCB.
These are the resources available to employers through the Employer Resource Centre:
I often get asked what an employer should do if they are laying off a worker and they are currently are on a Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) claim. The reality is that the heavy construction industry, for the most part, is a seasonal industry. Most companies lay off their workers at the end of the season and then re-hire people in the spring again. What people do in their layoff time varies from collecting employment insurance to working for another industry or maybe they vacation somewhere warmer. It varies from worker to worker.
If a worker on a WCB claim when the normal season layoff comes it can be a real pain for employers. The real issue is the worker is not medically fit to return to work, the WCB may pay them if the injury and layoff would preclude them from working somewhere else during the layoff period.
An example of this is Sam’s case. Sam works in the heavy construction industry driving heavy equipment until layoff but was injured at work. In the wintertime, Sam works doing snow removal for another company but due to his injury, this year during layoff cannot do his snow removal job. Sam’s wages would continue to be paid by the WCB unless the employer can find a job for Sam to do until he is fully recovered. Where possible, it is in the employer’s best interest to keep workers employed so the employer isn’t incurring WCB costs for the claim during layoff. Keeping people employed during a layoff season is not always possible for some employers, but if possible, it is a way to reduce WCB costs.
If you are able or can find something for an injured worker to do during layoff, it can be financially beneficial to keep that person working as long as possible to reduce your WCB costs.
In the past, if a worker was on WCB they would often make more than they would working their normal season in a seasonal industry. The Saskatchewan WCB brought in Section 70, recognizing that some workers were making more on WCB than they normally would make in a year. Section 70 states that a review will take place within 24 weeks of the claim’s acceptance to review the wage loss to see what that person would normally make in 52 weeks. If the person only ever works 26 weeks a year, then their WCB wage loss should reflect that and their wage loss may stay the same or get reduced. All claims are reviewed at the WCB for Section 70.4.
It is good to remember any cost that is put through the Saskatchewan WCB will affect an employer’s WCB premiums. In simple terms, less WCB costs equals less WCB premiums. If you are able or can find something for an injured worker to do during layoff, it can be financially beneficial to keep that person working as long as possible to reduce your WCB costs. I recognize that it may require some creative thinking to come up with some ideas for jobs during a layoff period, but it is worth it financially! Ideally, you hope you never have an injured worker still on the books during the seasonal layoff time, but sometimes it cannot be helped and you may have to bite the bullet and find something for them to do and hope it is short term.
WCB policies that can be referred to for more information are POL02/2018: Benefits Return to Work Interrupted; and Section 70.4: establishing a wage-base for seasonal workers.
WorkSafe Saskatchewan believes that all injuries are preventable, but unfortunately workplace injuries still occur. In some instances, employees must recuperate and make plans with their employer to safely return to work.
The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) is typically involved in these situations and helps to develop solutions for the employee and employer while considering the opinions of healthcare professionals. It can be a difficult process for SHCA members as they navigate what can be a time-consuming and unclear process. Phil Germain is the CEO of the Saskatchewan WCB and recently discussed industry relations with Think BIG, responding to questions submitted by members of the Saskatchewan Heavy Construction Association.
Phil Germain, CEO, Saskatchewan WCB
What prompts an internal review of a file?
Phil Germain (PG): We have different ways to conduct quality assurance and quality control. We have a new risk-based quality assurance program in which we pick a data point, such as August, and look at average durations of claims based on the area of injuries, such as body type, shoulder or neck, for the prior year.
We then focus our review on the claims that are outside of the normal averages. If there’s a group of claims that are outside of the averages, we’ll look at those claims and figure out why they are taking longer than what would be considered typical. Our goal is to conduct about 20 reviews every month.
What quality checks are in place to minimize administrative errors that can not only cost employers on their account, but also where employers can incur additional costs to appeal the issue if using a third-party provider?
PG: There’s going to be some administrative costs for an employer to register with the WCB, report annual payroll, get clearances for contractors and manage injuries including disability management and return to work. We know that some employers hire third parties to help them with these activities. There’s no question that both employers and the WCB incur additional administrative costs associated with unintentional errors either by the WCB or employers. Our main objective is to understand the root cause of those errors and try to make the necessary process and/or system changes, so we can prevent these errors from happening in the first place.
How does the WCB work with a company’s modified program, particularly in cases where a worker has left their employment?
PG: Our goal is to have every worker recover and return to work. Modified programs available for injured workers who left their employment would be dependent on different factors. If the worker left because they were laid off, we would continue to manage that claim until the individual had recovered to their pre-injury work condition. The claim would then be closed, other than possibly some medical costs. If they were no longer working for that employer, and they had reached their pre-injury work ability, we would help them find a new job. If the injury is so severe that they needed permanent restrictions, we would wait until the claim stabilized so we could understand the nature of the restrictions. After that, we would start to consider different vocational options for the worker.
“Some employers hire third parties to help them with WCB-related activities, which is an indication that our processes probably need to be adjusted and made easier for our customers.”
– Phil Germain, WCB
If a worker voluntarily leaves a modified return-to-work program, or basically refuses a medically-approved modified work program, it could put their benefits in jeopardy. The only reason I’m saying “could” is because we’re assuming that individual would get their benefits cut off just by refusing to return to work. That’s not necessarily taking into account other complicating factors that can be a result of the injury, such as mental health issues. Sometimes people’s lives are turned upside down because of the impact associated with a work injury.
Many employers have good return-to-work programs that are not being utilized because case workers seem primarily focussed on the employee. What is being done to ensure physicians are aware of employer’s return-to-work programs so that they can prescribe the appropriate modified work duties and expedite a safe return to work?
PG: Ideally, we want to start with return-to-work as the end goal and work backwards to figure out how we’re going to get there. Getting the individual back to work, even in a modified work setting, is what’s best for both the worker and the employer. Our staff make every effort to ensure they keep healthcare providers aware that modified work is available and that we’re striving to get the current work restrictions from that healthcare provider. We get that information to the employer to help facilitate an early and safe return to work. Some of this is a constant back and forth between all the stakeholders and can take days to get sorted.
We’re reaching out to the worker, then we’re reaching out to the doctor, which can take a few days, and then we’re reaching out to the employer. We need to confirm with the employer if they have modified work duties available and then it’s back to the healthcare provider. It’s easy for four or five days to go by as we’re trying to connect with people and get the information to make a good decision with a focus on recovery and return to work.
“The frustrations employers feel are legitimate and there are things that need to change within our systems and processes that will better enable us to work with employers.”
– Phil Germain, WCB
Now, having said all that, we know our processes are not applied consistently 100 per cent of the time, and even at that, our processes can be more efficient. We agree that with the right processes and systems in place, it is possible the decisions could take hours, not days. This is why we are embarking on a claims transformation project, to completely reimagine our claims processes. We started this journey in 2020 with a value stream mapping event that included employer and injured worker representatives.
The current system seems to favour employees’ words over those of employers. This can result in what some believe to be fraudulent claims by some employees. It also makes employers feel like our side of the story is not being heard. Are you considering a fresh approach that better balances the needs of both employees and employers?
PG: The frustrations employers feel are legitimate and there are things that need to change within our systems and processes that will better enable us to work with employers. I think we’re learning what it takes to ensure overall better return-to-work outcomes, and there is no question employers need to be deeply involved with that process from day one.
An SHCA member hired a consultant to help with an appeal. While the appeal was denied, the consultant found that the member, because of a clerical error, had been overcharged in excess of $20,000 by the WCB. The member had to pay the consultant to find a costly error that the WCB created. What systems have you implemented to prevent this from happening again?
PG: Some employers hire third parties to help them with WCB-related activities, which is an indication that our processes probably need to be adjusted and made easier for our customers. In 2019, with the help from the heavy construction association, we launched the Employer Resource Centre to serve as a single point of contact for employers. Navigating our system at times can be hard, so by creating this centre, we can help provide the answers or internal connection you need to get the right answers quickly and efficiently. Having said that, we do have different processes that are intended to catch these anomalies and correct them.
Is the WCB open to creating an industry/WCB working committee or task force of SHCA and the WCB officials to address some of the membership’s ongoing concerns?
PG: Our approach is to tap into existing structures and not create new committees or structures if they are not necessary. We find it more efficient for us and our customers if we can utilize existing structures like industry human resources committees, board meetings or conventions to dialogue with industry and understand what’s working and what’s not working. These meetings would be over and above the development of our new Voice of the Customer program that we are launching in 2021. Finally, as many in the heavy construction industry have done, we encourage employers to reach out to any of our senior leadership team if they have specific questions related to their business.
