Question: We have an Oregon employee who has been off work due to an injury for 10 weeks. The employee claimed that the injury was work related, so we didn’t count the time off under OFLA. But our workers compensation carrier recently denied the claim. Now that the claim isn’t covered by…
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What are 5 things you should you be hearing from your Retro or workers' comp provider? The first thing you should be hearing is the importance of immediacy. Why? In this short video, Dan Beaty, VP Workers’ Compensation explains: In claims, immediacy can mean the difference of hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Let's…
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“Accident prevention is a journey, not a destination”. This saying is often heard from Vigilant’s own Safety Manager, Manish Gooneratne. He’s full of profound truisms, and this one has always been memorable. It’s also relevant in light of the good news I received last week. You might recall that in last month’s post on workers’ comp best practices, I…
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After a recent visit to my doctor, I was told in no uncertain terms that I needed to change my eating habits or potentially face some serious health consequences. Wow. Ok. Did I know that my diet was off track? Yes (sigh). So, why did it take the specter of…
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Many business leaders we’ve recently spoken with have expressed frustration with the Washington workers’ compensation system. The sources of this frustration most often come down to an inability to understand and control this key and costly area of their business, difficulty working with the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), and a lack of…
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The most impactful way to lower workers’ compensation costs, the secret ingredient if you will, is to prevent injuries in the first place. The Vigilant safety team spends all day everyday doing just that with hundreds of companies. We’ve learned 4 key things about preventing injuries: Establish and maintain a culture of care. At…
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Receiving consistently large Retro refunds requires being in good company. When evaluating your current Retro program or investigating in a Retro for the first time, a critical component to consider is the company you will keep. For any Retro program to deliver consistently strong premium refunds, it must surround you…
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Question: Early in the pandemic, we didn’t discipline for absences related to COVID-19 (coronavirus). With all that’s changed since then, can we return to our regular attendance policy? Answer: Not so fast. In any state, if an employee quarantines or isolates due to a workplace exposure, the employee may have protection under state…
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Question: As we enter this new phase of the pandemic, it seems like everyone is going to get sick. With the vaccination mandate effectively dead, do we need to care anymore? Answer: Yes! It’s been a long haul, and pandemic fatigue is real, but employers still have an obligation to monitor and…
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How do we keep our employees safe when we’re understaffed and overworked, and our employees are feeling the associated mental and physical fatigue? If you’re like most of Vigilant’s members, you’re feeling the pressure of the times—more work than you have the resources to fulfil, making you feel behind and in “catch-up mode” most of the…
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