New Wisconsin Workers Compensation Rates 2020 approved by Commissioner of Insurance and are effective Oct. 1st, 2019
In 2020, the Wisconsin Business Community will be enjoying lower rates for Workers Compensation Insurance Premiums. Announced in July of 2019, Wisconsin’s Chief Insurance Regulator has approved an overall 8.84% decrease in workers’ compensation premium rates. These rates are effective Oct. 1, 2019, and are expected to save Wisconsin businesses more than $170 million in 2020.
Declining Wisconsin Workers Compensation Rates in 2020 mark the fourth consecutive year rates have fallen. Overall, the Workers Compensation Rates have decreased by 6.03 percent in 2018, 8.46 percent in 2017, and 3.19 percent in 2016. One main reason the Workers Compensation System is able to pass on savings to the business community is that employers reported a total of 82,400 injuries and illnesses in 2017. This is roughly 300 less than 2016 and means the insurance carriers had to pay out less for claims for injured workers. Additionally, the duration of temporary disability in Wisconsin is about two weeks shorter than the national average. This means Wisconsin workers are able to get back to work faster after an injury occurs. The final reason for savings is that Wisconsin has an older workforce. According to Chris Reader, director of health and human resources policy at Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, “Somebody who is 55, generally speaking, is simply safer on the job than someone who is 25.”
There are four industry sectors that make up a majority of the workforce in the state. All four are going to see significant declines for workers comp premium. Those industries include: Contracting at 11.21%, Office and Clerical at 8.75%, Goods and Services at 8.66%, and Manufacturing and Miscellaneous at 8.11%. Of the 525 entire workers’ compensation class codes included in the 2019 rate filing, 93 percent will see a rate decrease.