Board drives accountability of Yukon workers' compensation system with another $10 million rebate to employers
For the third year, the Yukon Workers’ Compensation Health and Safety Board (YWCHSB) will distribute $10 million to eligible Yukon employers in the form of a rebate.
As a result, from 2012 through to the end of 2018, over $54 million will have been distributed to Yukon employers in the form of rate subsidies and rebate cheques.
“We are continuing to deliver on our commitment to return the surplus position of the Compensation Fund to within its 121% to 129% target range,” said Board Chair Mark Pike. “This target range was established through extensive consultation with worker and employer stakeholder groups and is reflected in the Board’s funding policy.”
At the end of 2016 the Compensation Fund’s surplus position was 150%, down a full ten percent from two years prior.
“It might seem odd to some people that even as employer assessment rates will go up in 2018, we’re distributing funds as rebates,” said YWCHSB President/CEO Kurt Dieckmann. “Rate increases are, in fact, a direct and natural consequence of rebates.
“When there is a surplus in our Compensation Fund, as there is now, our funding policy requires us to reduce rates through subsidies. That moves rates down.
“As the surplus is reduced, we are required to likewise reduce the subsidy portion in employer assessment rates. As a result, rates go up.
“This is one way we work to ensure the workers’ compensation system represents a balance of accountability to both workers and employers.
“On one hand, the interests of workers in our care must be protected for the long term. On the other, employers should be contributing funds to the system at a rate that is fair to them while also accurately representing its actual costs.”
To qualify for the 2017 rebate, employers must have had an open account with YWCHSB in 2016 that was not in a collections status at the end of that year. YWCHSB will begin issuing cheques to employers with accounts in good standing before the end of 2017.