Workplace safety is a crucial thing for both employees and employers. A safe work environment is important to avoid accidents, illnesses, and injuries at the workplace. Workers’ Compensation is a vital safety net that provides financial support to employees who are injured or become ill while on the job. Workplace safety can help employers to retain great talents by valuing their well-being. A safe workplace for employees boosts productivity resulting in substantial business growth. Along with boosting employees’ morale, workplace safety can have a positive impact on the brand image of the business and reputation.
Providing a secure work environment is not just an ethical responsibility, but also a legal compulsion for employers. There is a social security legislation called the Workmen Compensation Act, of 1923 to protect employees. As per the law, it is the employer’s duty to ensure the well-being of their employees or workers. The law holds employers liable for payment of compensation to workers in case they suffer injury, death, illness, and property damage due to workplace-related accidents. Hence, it is mandatory for employers to avail the worker compensation insurance for the financial protection and well-being of their workers. This article, let us understand how safety is promoted through worker compensation.
Workmen’s Compensation Insurance
Worker compensation or workmen’s compensation insurance is a ‘no fault’ insurance that provides financial assistance in case any insured workers suffer an injury, illness, death, or property damage due to an unforeseen event while performing their job. The compensation benefits include financial assistance to the family of a diseased employee, medical costs for treatment of injury, disability benefits, rehabilitation costs, and cover for lost income, etc.
Generally, worker compensation insurance covers all employees excluding casual employees. There is also workers’ compensation insurance for contractors that cover the workers employed by these contractors.
Promoting Safety Through Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Worker compensation insurance plays a pivotal role in promoting safety at the workplace by providing financial assistance and various incentives to ensure safety. Worker compensation insurance is a great risk management tool for employers along with other safety measures to maintain a secure work environment.
Here are some of the ways to promote safety through worker compensation:
Develop a Comprehensive Worker Welfare Program
Workmen’s compensation insurance promotes worker welfare programs. Along with insurance, employers can establish a welfare program that defines safety procedures, security policies, and guidelines. A program can be specific to your industry to address the particular risks.
Involving certain employees in outlining the programs can help too. You can even form committees within your organisation to address specific safety concerns.
Implement Incentive Programs in Workers’ Compensation Insurance
The premium for workmen’s compensation insurance and the benefits of the policy are associated with the employer’s incentive programs. Worker compensation coverage can be availed at a discounted rate for implementing good incentive programs. This includes rewarding a worker who consistently follows all the safety measures.
Such incentive programs and reward systems can reduce the risk of accidents to a certain extent in the workplace. This can be greatly beneficial for businesses of high-risk industries to reduce their premium. There is also high-risk workers’ compensation insurance available to get extensive coverage.
Safety Education for Workers
To reap the benefits of worker compensation insurance, workers need to report the incident or injuries accurately and on time. Hence, it is important to provide safety education and regular training to employees on various preventive actions, threat identification, etc. It is crucial to provide training on safety protocols on a regular basis.
Establish a Captive Insurance Company
Larger businesses can form a captive insurance company of their own to provide captive workers’ compensation insurance coverage for their employees. In this arrangement, the captive worker’s compensation insurance is funded by the employer through premium and capital infusion. By this, the employer can promote safety and effectively manage risk.
Return to Work Programs
Worker compensation also promotes safety by helping temporarily disabled employees return to work with this program. Though disability insurance worker compensation provides disability benefits to temporary disablement, the return-to-work program can further reduce the financial burden.
Safety Audit conduction in Workers’ Compensation
Workmen compensation insurance providers can offer consultation services to employers and even conduct safety audits to help them identify potential risks. Furthermore, this can help employers to improve their existing safety protocols, security measures, etc.
Conclusion
Businesses can sustain themselves for the longer term by promoting safety in the workplace. A secure work environment contributes to sustainable growth. Availing of the best workmen’s compensation insurance provides financial support and helps businesses prioritise workplace safety. Moreover , it is also important to review the worker compensation policies regularly to ensure adequate coverage aligned with the need.
