Canadian Payroll Reporter

3 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2017 Panel calls for 'worker-centred' WCB Alberta employers should maintain health benefits, reinstate injured workers: Report BY SHEILA BRAWN EMPLOYEES OFF work re- ceiving workers' compensation benefits should continue to be covered under their employer's benefits plan. And, when they are ready to go back to work, their employer should be obli- gated to reinstate them. These are two of the payroll- related changes that a panel reviewing Alberta's workers' compensation system recently recommended to the provincial government. The government appointed the three-member panel last year to study the workers' com- pensation system in the prov- ince. It is the first major review of the system in more than 15 years. In its final report, which the government released in July, the panel put forward 60 recom- mendations covering a variety of issues, including governance of the Workers' Compensation Board (WCB), the service it pro- vides, wage-loss benefits, health care, return-to-work initiatives, employer assessment rates, and appeals of WCB decisions. Labour Minister Christina Gray said the government would review the report, called Work- ing Together: Report and Recom- mendations of the Alberta Work- ers' Compensation Board (WCB) Review Panel, before announc- ing any changes to legislation. The report said the system requires widespread changes to shift the focus from managing claims to looking after the health and well-being of workers. "This should be the focus around which the system's poli- cies, processes and decisions are made," the report said. It added that workers, em- ployers and other stakeholders would benefit from changes that would make workers' compen- sation fairer, more cost-effective and transparent. A legislative requirement for employers to reinstate workers injured or made ill on the job would be one way to make the system more worker-centred, the report recommended. Although statistics show that 93.7 per cent of workers whose claims were closed in 2016 re- turned to work with their em- ployer, the report said the num- bers do not tell the whole story. "For example, it is an open question as to how long these workers were retained by their employers after they returned," it said. "These statistics also do not tell us how many workers were re-engaged at their employers in ways that meaningfully made use of their capacities, nor do they indicate whether the em- ployer faced resource challenges in bringing the workers back to their workplaces." During consultations, the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) told the panel that with- out mandatory reinstatement, workers face significant finan- cial difficulties if their employer does not re-hire them. "Anecdotally, worker advo- cates report that some employ- ers refuse to re-employ injured workers when they are ready to return to work," said the AFL. "These workers may be able to pursue remedy through the hu- man rights system, but this is a slow process and, in the interim, the WCB normally reduces or see REPORT page 8 News CPR | September 2017 Canada's payroll professionals ensure that $928 billion in annual wages and benefi ts are paid to employees. With 50% of Canadians living pay cheque to pay cheque it is critical that employees are paid accurately and on time. Take control of your fi nancial future and "Pay Yourself First" by automatically saving at least 10% of your earnings through payroll deductions. Talk to your payroll professional today! PAYROLL PROFESSIONALS – KEEPING CANADA PAID.™ NATIONAL PAYROLL WEEK SEPTEMBER 11-15, 2017 PAYROLL.CA • #NPW2017

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