FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 29, 2022
WorkplaceNL holds average assessment rate steady for fifth consecutive year
St. John’s, NL – Effective January 1, 2023, WorkplaceNL will hold the average assessment rate paid by employers at $1.69 per $100 of payroll, which includes a temporary $0.21 average discount. The rate continues to be the lowest in over 35 years.
Per stakeholder-agreed policy, the average $0.21 temporary discount is to reduce the surplus in the employer-funded Injury Fund over 15 years – which was 132.3 per cent funded at December 31, 2021, over the 110 per cent target. The discount was first applied in 2019.
While the average rate is $1.69, employers’ individual rates will vary based on their industry grouping and their workplace injury experience. Fewer claims, lower costs and safer workplaces means lower rates for most employers. Those with a fully functioning safety program and return-to-work program can help prevent injury and better support injured workers.
The Maximum Compensable and Assessable Earnings (MCAE) used to calculate the total assessment employers pay will increase by 5.6 per cent, from $69,005 to $72,870 for 2023. Wage-loss benefits for injured workers submitting a new claim whose pre-injury earnings are at or above $72,870 will be calculated using this new limit. WorkplaceNL adjusts the MCAE each year based on the average Consumer Price Index.
“Our financial position, with better-than-expected investment returns in 2021, allows us to hold the average assessment rate steady for a fifth consecutive year,” said Dennis Hogan. “As a responsible steward of a sustainable Injury Fund, we will continue to work with employers, workers, safety associations and other safety partners to prevent workplace injury and illness, and improve services for injured workers and their employers should there be an incident.”
WorkplaceNL cautions that the average assessment rate may soon increase. Claim durations and costs are rising. Also, supply chain issues, inflation and geopolitical developments are causing significant fluctuations in global financial markets and the Injury Fund investments. The average base assessment rate may increase if claims costs increase, and the discount may be removed if the funded position falls below 110 per cent.
Notices of assessment rates for employers will be online by the end of November. Employers who have not yet done so are encouraged to register for a connect (online services) account via MyWorkplaceNL.
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Related Links
2023 Classification of Industries and Assessment Rates
MyWorkplaceNL online services
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About WorkplaceNL
Serving approximately 215,000 workers and 17,500 employers, WorkplaceNL administers an employer-funded, no-fault workers’ compensation system that promotes safe and healthy workplaces, provides return-to-work programs and offers compensation to injured workers and their dependents.
Media contact:
Carla Riggs, Director of Communications
709.778.1590 or carla.riggs@workplacenl.ca
BACKGROUNDER
2023 Assessment Rate Statistics
- Fifty percent of employers will have no change or a lower annual assessment rate and 50 per cent of employers will have a higher rate in 2023.
- The industries with the largest decrease in assessment rates are logging and forestry (down 13 per cent) and government services (down seven per cent).
- Educational services (up 11 per cent) and mining (up seven per cent) have the highest increases.
About Employer Assessments
- Newfoundland and Labrador’s mandatory, no-fault workers’ compensation system protects workers and employers in the event of workplace injury or illness.
- The system is funded by employer assessments and investment returns from these assessments.
- The system is meant to provide fair compensation for injured workers at reasonable rates for employers.
- Employers’ assessments cover costs related to work-related injury and illness, including: wage-loss, health care, return-to-work programs, prevention initiatives and administration.
- The overall assessment an employer pays is based on their individual assessment rate multiplied by the payroll of their workers at or under the maximum amount (assessment = rate x assessable payroll).
- Employers can lower their assessments by having functioning safety programs to prevent injuries and return-to-work programs to support injured or ill workers.