Links and Resources

November 2011 Stakeholder Meetings

In November, Prof. Arthurs held two joint sessions; the first with worker and employer representatives and the second with the WSIB and the Ministry of Labour. In these meetings Prof. Arthurs provided an update on the progress of the Review including his preliminary conclusions. If you are interested in receiving a copy of the meeting materials, please contact the Funding Review at [email protected] .

June 2011 Stakeholder Meetings

In June Prof. Arthurs met with worker and employer representatives, the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board, the Ministry of Labour and provincial Labour Critics to provide an update on what he has heard though the course of the Public Hearings and from written submissions. The materials used in these meetings are available to the public. If you are interested in obtaining a copy, please contact the Funding Review at [email protected] .

Public Hearings April-May, 2011

As part of Phase Two of the Funding Review, Public Hearings were held in a number of cities across Ontario. Approximately 100 organizations/individuals provided input to the Review. To view the list of presenters and submissions click here .

Technical Consultation January 2011

A two-day Technical Consultation was held on January 25 and 26, 2011. Funding Review Chair Harry Arthurs invited expert stakeholder representatives to receive presentations from key members of WSIB management on the Board’s finances, actuarial assumptions and processes. Materials presented by the WSIB at this Technical Consultation are available here .

Meredith Report - Full Text

http://www.archive.org/details/finalreportonlia00onta

This report, published in 1913, formed the basis for Workers' Compensation in Ontario as we know it today. Sir William R. Meredith, after heading a Royal Commission begun in 1910 , proposed that a workers' compensation system be set up based on the following principles:

• Security of Payment
• No fault system
• Collective liability
• Administration by an independent agency.

Meredith Report -Summary (22pgs.)

http://www.awcbc.org/en/workerscompensationhistoryoverview.asp

Steady State funding model of CPP

The mandate of the office of the Chief Actuary is to conduct statutory actuarial valuations of the CPP, Old Age Security(OAS) program, federal public sector employees pension and insurance plans and Canada Student Loans Program (CLSP). This paper was written with the purpose of analyzing and comparing the financing of the CPP using different measures, in particular, the unfunded obligations and funded ratios of the Plan under various group methodologies, including a methodology more consistent with that used for occupational defined benefit plans.

WSIB Chair's Consultation Report, 2009 /en/community/WSIB/ArticleDetail?vgnextoid=3dd6a5596b8d7210VgnVCM100000449c710aRCRD

In 2008 and 2009, the Province of Ontario faced unprecedented economic challenges driven predominantly by global financial events. As a significant player in the Province's overall economic health , the WSIB felt it was imperative for it to have immediate dialogue with stakeholders on its programs and services. The goal of this consultation was to gather the input needed to create the foundation for building a sustainable workplace health and safety insurance system for Ontario.

Institute for Work and Health

http://www.iwh.on.ca/wsib/resource-documents-on-experience-rating

IWH has posted on their web site four research documents on experience rating.

Reshaping Workers' Compensation for Ontario. A report submitted to Robert G. Elgie, MD, Minister of Labour
© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1980. Reproduced with permission.

http://www.archive.org/details/reshapingworkers00weil

In his initial report Professor Weiler reviewed the fundamental premises of the workers' compensation system and recommended a variety of changes aimed at overhauling the benefit system, introducing the concept of "dual award", and the administrative structure of workers' compensation.

Protecting the Worker from Disability: Challenges for the Eighties. A report submitted to Russell H. Ramsay, Minister of Labour
© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1983. Reproduced with permission.

http://www.archive.org/details/protectingworker00weil

Weiler's second report addressed the longer-range issues of how occupational diseases should be handled within workers' compensation, and examined the relationship between workers' compensation and other public programs for compensation and prevention of disabling injuries to Ontario workers. This second report also considered a system of universal disability compensation as an alternative.

Permanent Partial Disability: Alternative Models for Compensation. A report submitted to William Wrye, Minister of Labour
© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1983. Reproduced with permission.

http://www.archive.org/details/permanentpartial00weil

In this third report Professor Weiler re-examined the original dual-award proposal and recommended a new variant of the system based on "projected wage loss".

New Directions for Workers' Compensation Reform. Report of the Honourable Cam Jackson, Minister Without Portfolio Responsible for Workers' Compensation Reform
© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1996. Reproduced with permission.

http://www.archive.org/details/newdirectionsfor00jack

The recommendations made by Minister Jackson formed the basis of Bill 99 which provided for one of the most comprehensive revisions of the compensation system since 1914. The recommendations aimed to refocus the system to encourage worker and employer self-reliance; restore the integrity of the workers' compensation system as a workplace accident insurance plan; and to ensure full funding of the workers' compensation system.

MEDIA ADVISORY: WSIB Funding Review Launches Public Hearings (March 2011)

Media Backgrounder:WSIB Funding Review Launches Public Hearings

Overview

The WSIB administers no-fault, collective liability insurance for Ontario employers and their workers. The WSIB collects premiums from employers to pay the current and future costs of claims. Ideally, revenue should be equal to or greater than the actual costs of the system. However, the amount of money collected from employers and the income from the WSIB’s investments has been less than the cost of funding the system. This shortfall has resulted in an unfunded liability that was about $11.7 billion as of December 2009.

In 2009, the Auditor General of Ontario reviewed the WSIB’s projected unfunded liability as part of a regular review process. The Auditor General commented on the large unfunded liability and the risk that this poses to the system’s financial viability.

The WSIB recognized that action must be taken to manage the Unfunded Liability and in the fall of 2010, the Board announced a comprehensive Funding Review. This Review is looking at how the UFL developed, how serious a risk it represents to the WSIB system and what might be done to minimize or eliminate that risk. The Funding Review is examining six important policy issues related to the financial state of the system. These issues include: Funding, Premium Rates, Rate Groups, Employer Incentives, Occupational Disease Claims and Benefits Indexation for Partially Disabled Workers.

The Review, Chaired by Professor Harry Arthurs, is seeking input from interested parties. Over 100 organizations/individuals have registered for the Public Hearings in Hamilton, London, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Toronto and Windsor which will be held in April. A complete list of presenters is available at www.wsibfundingreview.ca .

Consolidated questions and information requests to Funding Review Technical Sessions.

/files/Content/FundingReviewConsolidatedResponses/ConsolidatedResponses.pdf