Workers’ compensation insurance benefits both you and your employees and plays an important role in connecting injured workers to the care they need to return to work quickly and safely. PT Business Solutions offers effective workers’ compensation programs to reduce your risk of a catastrophic financial loss and decreases the possibility of legal claims. We keep our clients up-to-date on industry trends so that your business does not fall behind the evolving risk landscape.
Even though the pandemic continues, there is good news on the horizon. Here are three trends that may positively impact your business as it relates to workers’ compensation.
1. Safer Work Environments
The Covid pandemic forced businesses to look at overall employee safety. Businesses have been working hard to create and maintain safe workplaces and have improved their risk management plans. Focusing on establishing new and fixing old safety issues in your work environment can help save you money in the long run. You will reduce the chances of employees getting workplace injuries, thus reducing the number of workers’ comp claims and lowering your workers’ comp premium.
2. Advanced Tech
Widespread adoption of technology is benefiting workers’ compensation for business owners.
Telehealth
Experts think telehealth is here to stay, and patients are demanding it. For example, UCLA Health believes that post-pandemic, 20% of their volume will continue through telehealth.
Telehealth helps provide injured workers with 1) instant treatment, 2) easy access to medication and advice, 3) personalized care, and 4) time savings by not visiting the doctor’s office. This can help injured workers return to their jobs quicker. It can also help reduce their total medical costs and claim costs.
Sensor-based Tech
Implementation of sensor-based devices is also helping reduce workers’ comp costs. These are smart devices like cameras, wearables, watches, cell phones, and even smart vehicles equipped with sensors. For example, think of workers lifting boxes with bad posture; wearables can collect data throughout the day that you can use to train these employees. You can reduce their medical claims and time off.
3. Gig Economy
Income statistics show wages and participation in the gig economy have increased by 33% in 2020. Independent contractors, freelancers and consultants are part of the gig economy, and most of the time, they are not covered by workers’ comp. These workers are not included in your overall payroll, and since your cost for workers’ compensation is a percentage of your payroll, these costs may go down too.
Contact us to ensure your compliance and safety programs are up-to-date, and to see if there are other cost-saving measures you can institute.