Premiums will freeze at the 2010 rate of $1.63 per $100 of payroll
The Worker's Compensation Board of Saskatchewan (WCB) will freeze the 2011 average employer premium at the 2010 rate of $1.63 per $100 of payroll. The proposed premium freeze is the second lowest average premium in Saskatchewan in a decade and 20.5 per cent below the 10-year high of $2.05 in 2004. Saskatchewan is expected to have the fourth lowest average premium in Canada for 2011.
The proposal will be presented to business and industry organizations in a series of consultations to be held in Regina. WCB board members will consider feedback from the consultations when final rates are set in November.
Consultation is important to the rate setting process, says WCB chairperson David Eberle.
“Employers fund the compensation system. We are accountable to them for the decisions we make on how we raise and spend premium dollars.”
Eberle said that accountability to employers is balanced by a legislated requirement to remain fully funded.
“Rate setting truly shows how the WCB serves both employers and workers,” he adds. “We set rates based on the revenue we need to pay the costs of claims for today and into the future. This gives employers the rate stability they need to do long-term planning. It also keeps us fully-funded, so that injured worker benefits are secure.”
With the rate proposal:
•17,340 employers pay higher premium rates next year. The average increase is 5.8 per cent; the range is 0.7 to 15.5 per cent.
•Premiums for 22,501 employers stay the same or are lower. The average decrease is 3.5 percent; the range is 0.5 to 10.0 per cent.
Peter Federko, chief executive officer of the WCB, explains that the 2011 rate proposal includes a $0.02 economic stabilization levy. Federko calls it a cautionary move.
Employers can influence their premium rates by taking steps to prevent workplace injuries.
