Safety
National Fire Prevention Week, October 6-12
Fires are one of the most feared hazards for families and businesses. Each year thousands of people die and billions of dollars are lost due to fires. (Read more)
Halloween Health and Safety Tips
Fall celebrations like Halloween are fun for children who dress up and venture out to collect candy and treats. Review some quick safety tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Read more)
The Great Shakeout
Check out how you and your business can actively prepare and participate in the upcoming Great Shakeout. Download a supplemental Earthquake Safety Actions PDF.
Asbestos Safety
Hiring a contractor? Don’t get caught in a cloud of dangerous asbestos dust. If asbestos is present, your contractor must be certified. Find a certified asbestos contractor.
Hazard Alert
Review the roles, responsibilities, and procedures during the erecting and dismantling of tower cranes. Download the DOSH Hazard Alert PDF.
GRIP Safety Survey
We would like to hear from you. Please take 30-seconds to complete the GRIP SAFETY SURVEY and let us know what is important to you and your business.
Workers’ Comp News
How to Earn a Workers’ Compensation Premium Discount
Every company in Washington with employees must buy workers’ compensation insurance. How much you pay is up to you. Most employers are required to purchase this insurance through the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). Much like a safe driving discount, L&I offers a claim-free discount to those employers who provide a safe work environment. This discount can lower your premium by as much as 10% to 40%, which in turn, lowers your overhead costs. Keeping these costs low can be a competitive advantage within your industry.
How do you earn this discount? As an employer, you must avoid L&I paying wages to employees who spend time away from work due to an injury (Time Loss). If you can avoid Time Loss for a period of three years or more, your company could be eligible for the claim-free discount. Your first step is building a strong and proactive safety program and then, if injuries happen, bring your employees back to work as quickly as possible. In places where a small amount of time is missed while putting your light-duty job offer together, you can pay workers their regular wages instead of letting L&I pay Time Loss. These are your best tools to eliminate the compensable indemnity claims that raise your rates and remove your eligibility from getting a claim-free discount.
Once you’ve avoided indemnity claims for 3 years, L&I will calculate your rates and then reduce them even further by applying the claim-free discount. Your discount depends on the size of your company and the number of hours you report, with larger companies earning a bigger discount.
Do you know if you qualify now for a claim-free discount or what you need to do to earn one? Contact the GRIP Group Manager, Trish Liembach, or Claim Manager for more information!
Upcoming Training
October 8, 2019 Getting your GRIP on Claims, Comp and Safety
October 8, 2019 Return to Work Pays: L&I’s Stay at Work Program
Use the online form to sign up for GRIP-specific trainings (above).
View a list of other ERNwest training including:
October 17, 2019 Incident Analysis
October 22, 2019 Using Kept on Salary and Modified Duty Effectively
L&I News
L&I Proposes New Workers’ Comp Rates in 2020
L&I proposes a 0.8% decrease and attributes several factors, including declining workplace injury rates along with L&I initiatives that promote early recovery. If adopted, individual employers may see smaller or larger drops depending on the employer’s industry and claims history. Attend one of three public hearings starting October 29. (Read more)
GRIP Retro Questions? Please contact Trish Leimbach, GRIP Group Manager at
(253) 343-0153 | TLeimbach@ernwest.com
GRIP Safety Questions? Please email our safety department at Safety@ernwest.com
