Most companies will experience a workers’ compensation claim at some point. The more risk involved in the job, the higher the chance for a claim. These claims cost the company money. Insurance premiums go up and production at work goes down. How much money these claims cost the company is partly in their own hands. Steps can be taken before someone is even hired to help assess if the employee will become a valuable member of the team, or the next workers’ comp victim. Even after an injury occurs there are measures that can be taken to minimize cost.
Before a company hires an employee they need to ask themselves certain questions. Is this position physically demanding? If so, you need to be sure the applicant has the ability to perform these tasks. Does the applicant have any pre-existing injuries? If there are then the company should identify these in case they become re-injured. If driving is involved, are you obtaining the applicants’ driving records? If the company hires an individual with a history of poor driving it could lead to large losses. Even if you follow the aforementioned guidelines, there is no way to ensure that an injury will not occur.
Procedures that follow an injury are just as crucial. What procedures does your company have in place? Have you outlined steps that should be taken by the members of management such as your Supervisors? What steps have you identified that should be followed by the injured employee? Should they seek treatment at their primary care physician or at an occupation healthcare facility? The answers to these questions and others could have a dramatic effect on whether the employee is out of work for 2 days or 2 months. What happens after an incident occurs could affect the claim amount in the tens of thousands of dollars.
You should be working closely with your agent on developing primary and secondary prevention strategies. Developing these strategies can minimize the amount of losses as well as their financial impact on your bottom line.
