Work Comp Rates for Employer Go Down Again.
For the seventh year in a row, Wisconsin employers (on average) will be paying less for worker’s compensation insurance. Continuing a trend in recent years, the average work comp premium rates will go down another 8.47% percent after October 1, 2022 (based on the rates approved from the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance). Such a decrease in premium rates is a benefit to employers, and reflects the historical success of the worker’s compensation system in Wisconsin.
For historical background, the work comp insurance rates have decreased by:
- 3.19% in 2016
- 8.46% in 2017
- 6.03% in 2018
- 8.84% in 2019
- 0.93% in 2020
- 5.44% in 2021
- 8.47% in 2022
Over a 42% decrease in 7 years!
The value of worker’s compensation insurance to Wisconsin employers
The decreasing work comp insurance rates should be remembered the next time any employer complains about paying their work comp premiums. Overall, employers are paying less and less of their business expenses/overhead for work comp premiums–helping their business bottom line. More importantly, having the Worker’s Compensation System protects employers from the uncertainties of the civil liability system. Many employers forget the “grand bargain” of work comp–struck back in 1911 in Wisconsin–where workers gave up the right to sue employers for their injuries (along with large pain and suffering awards) in exchange for more defined benefits without having to prove fault. If the work comp system was not in place, employers could be sued for a worker’s injuries–resulting in an award that could drive an employer out of business. However, by having the work comp system for 100+ years (along with the continual decreasing work comp premium rates), workers are precluded from suing their employers. I encourage all of Wisconsin employers to recognize this important bargain.
