b'ary\'sCornerA9 ~ \' - - - - 0 \\- -The Effects ofInjuries on On-the-Job Employers: Workers\' Compensation By Gary Auman Employers in every industry areem must work,th costscompany havingall costs of ployereseto pay deluged with information on amay be extreme.theon-the-jobinjuryasa selfregular basisconcerningon-the-jobNext,if theemployerhastheinsuredemployer,pluspossible safety. We know that safety is themisfortune to be located in apenalties tostate for not carrystatethe "right thing" to do.know that itthatpermits intentionaltortlaw ing the required coverage. We is "thelaw." Yet, most employerssuits, the employer has to considerSix states in the U ted States are nidonot take safet1 seriously; theythe potential impact oflitiga monopolistic st . In these states, suchatestalk agame, but that isrtion.course, w hon-the-jobprivate insuranceis not permitted goodas fa Ofit any goes ereanthe emp opas it.injury, th is the risk ofOSHAandloyer has thetion of Very fewemployersreally faceinspection. T we have the indi being eith self-insured or particihener Anaggressively up to the potential for serious on rect costs of theand pos patingin a state-operatedinsuraccident the-job injuries. They just will notsible third-party issues.an fund. In the remaining states, enforced safetyce accept the fact that with aFinally,h various employ theisto obtain seriousweaveemployerpermitted program mayinjury,ircan collapse likement-styled actions that may con private insuranceaswell asthe the world significantly reduce ahousekers\' aof cards without warning.front the employer. Theseinvolveother options toprovide worThe first thing anemployer haspotentialclaims under theFamilycompensation coverage. company\'s on-the-jobtoacceptis that withouta well Medical L Act, theicansWhether workers\' compensation eaveAmerpwell-drafted,well-imple withDisabilitiesAct,andOSHAcoverageisobtained throughprilanned, injury rate.mented,andwell-enforcedsafetyd iscrination.vateinsu n orthrougha mira ce plan,accidentswillhappen.TheT article wil I brieflydiscussmonopolistic state fund,the comhis second thing the employer has toeachoneof these areas for theirp claim historyhasa direct any\'s accept is thataa identpotential impact. As you will see atimpactontheir cost of coverevenminorcc age caninto ajor headache.the conclusion, it p toaWeekly disabilityrates vary turnma aysprovidebenefit What areofthin safe workplace for your employeesfrom state to state, as withe types somethegs that11 anemployer must consider whentominimizethepoten foron ofoth benefitsavailable toan tialer the-jobin rifacing an on accident?the-jobju es.injuredworker.Somestatestake First, ofe, there iscostinto consider n wh a cours theatio ethercomoftheworkers\'compensationWorkers\' Compensationpanywascomplyingwithsafety claim. Depending up the state inAll50statesrequirethatanr iremen atthetimeofthe onequ ts which the employer is located, theemployer provideworkers\'com injury and a compa failure to ny\'s nature of the typethepensation coverage for its employ comply withsafety requirements of insurance employercarries,andtheinsur ees.is is acoverage.can,in someinstan resultin Th mandatoryces, ancecompanywithwhichtheFailure to carry it may result in theadditional costs beingawarded to the injured workers. Of course, an award to the injured worker, from medicalbenefitstopen tiesfor alfailure tolyhcomp wit safety regulatio will im thecompany\'s ns,pact ce workers\' compensation experienrating and insurance premium. Of course, the besttoid wayavohigh workers\'ion premicompensatums isavoidthe-job injuries. toon-Anaggressively-enforcedsafety~ Co inued on page 7,I nt'