Progress to Date

In September, 2010, the WSIB announced the establishment of an independent Funding Review, chaired by Prof. Harry Arthurs, to provide advice on how to best ensure the long-term financial viability of Ontario’s workers’ safety and insurance scheme. That announcement explains the concerns about the WSIB’s unfunded liability that prompted the decision to establish the Funding Review, outlines guiding principles for the Funding Review, identifies the issues it is to investigate, sets out its responsibilities to consult with employers, workers and other stakeholders and define the procedures the Review will follow as well as its relationship to the WSIB.

The full text of this announcement can be found here . Subsequently, in December 2010, the Ontario government enacted Bill 135 which imposes on the WSIB a duty to maintain “sufficient funding” to meet its present and future obligations, as well as a process to ensure that it does so. For the text of Bill 135 click here .

In addition, the WSIB has initiated several reviews of its policies and processes, and has taken various initiatives to improve its procedures with a view to ensuring its efficient operation. Details of some of these reviews and initiatives can be found here

And not least, the Funding Review team has been hard at work:

  • It has met informally with a number of groups representing stakeholders.
  • It has invited a group of technical experts — some nominated by the stakeholders, some non-aligned — to a consultation at which the WSIB will provide detailed information and analysis concerning its financial issues.
  • It is developing plans for a public consultation across Ontario in the spring of 2011.
  • It has launched a website to provide information concerning the work of the Funding Review as well as access to important documents relevant to its work.

Most importantly, the Funding Review has developed and distributed a Green Paper which is essential reading for anyone interested in the Funding Review:

  • The Green Paper explains the financial issues confronting the WSIB in simple and accessible language.
  • The Green Paper provides additional background, greater detail and up-to-date information concerning these issues.
  • The Green Paper poses a number of questions which should assist interested parties in developing their positions for presentation during the forthcoming public consultations.
  • The Green Paper explains how to make submissions to the Funding Review.

See the tab above for the “Green Paper”.