Vigilant Blog

News, trends and analysis in employment law, HR, safety & workers' comp

Showing posts for: Workers’ Comp

Photo of Lorraine Amrine
Mar 16 2023
Leave LawsWorkers’ Comp  

OREGON Q&A: Track OFLA after workers’ comp claim is denied

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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Photo of Dan Beaty
Mar 15 2023
Featured Worker’s CompWorkers’ Comp  

Immediacy: Why your workers’ comp provider should be talking about it

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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Photo of Bryon Bailey
Feb 09 2023
Featured Worker’s CompSafety and HealthWorkers’ Comp  

Are we there yet? Accident prevention journey vs destination

“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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Photo of Bryon Bailey
Jan 04 2023
Featured Worker’s CompSafety and HealthWorkers’ Comp  

Workers’ Comp Best Practices: Don’t wait to begin!

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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Photo of Derek Glos
May 26 2022
Featured Worker’s CompWorkers’ Comp  

Workers’ comp partner or program? It’s in your control.

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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Photo of Manish Gooneratne
Apr 25 2022
Featured Worker’s CompSafety and HealthWorkers’ Comp  

Pssst! The secret to lowering workers’ comp premiums

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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Photo of Dan Beaty
Mar 22 2022
Featured Worker’s CompWorkers’ Comp  

Keep good company for large retro refunds

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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Photo of Lorraine Amrine
Feb 17 2022
Q&ACOVID-19Leave LawsWorkers’ Comp  

Q&A: Be aware of employment protections for COVID-19 absences

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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Photo of Lorraine Amrine
Jan 20 2022
COVID-19Safety and HealthWorkers’ Comp  

Q&A: Keep on top of COVID-19 protocols

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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Photo of Manish Gooneratne
Nov 18 2021
Safety and HealthWorkers’ Comp  

Understaffed and overworked? Apply these safety measures

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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