Average Assessment Rates Remain Stable

$1.68 per $100.00 a Manitoba advantage

The average assessment rate that Manitoba employers pay for their workers’ compensation coverage will remain stable at $1.68 effective January 1, 2007.

Manitoba employers will pay an average of $1.68 per $100.00 of their assessable payroll to the WCB for injury insurance coverage, including wage loss payments, medical benefits and rehabilitation services. An employer’s actual rate may be lower or higher, depending on their firm’s injury cost record, and their industry’s safety risk.

“In total, about 64 percent of employers will see reductions in their WCB premium rates in 2007,” says Doug Sexsmith, WCB President and CEO. “Overall, Manitoba will have the third lowest average assessment rate in Canada.”

There are a number of contributing factors that help the WCB maintain the current low rate. Safer workplaces and good investment returns are keeping WCB costs in check, while the gradual phase-out of the employer’s maximum assessable earnings ceiling is continuing. The 2007 maximum assessable earnings will be set at $71,000.

The workplace injury rate has fallen 21 percent in Manitoba from 2000 to 2005. Sexsmith would like employers to consider what additional measures they can take in order to make their workers safer and in turn reduce their compensation and business costs.

“Reducing injuries is crucial in our efforts to keep the assessment rate low,” Sexsmith says. “Every employer can be proactive and take steps to further lower their own rates by developing safer workplaces, formalizing health and safety procedures, and implementing more effective disability management and return to work programs.”

Strong investment income is another key element in keeping rates low. 2006 WCB investment income was budgeted at approximately $45 million, with actual investment income projected to be better than budget.

In addition to those firms which will see their premium rate drop in 2007, 22 percent of firms will experience no change in their premium rate and 14 percent will see their premium rate rise. The WCB expects to collect about $184,000,000 in premiums from covered Manitoba employers in 2007.

The Manitoba WCB is a mutual injury and disability insurance agency governed by a Board of Directors representing employers, workers and the public interest and funded by employer premiums. The WCB insures approximately 70% of the workers in Manitoba, employed by over 24,000 registered employers.