Workers’ Compensation and Surplus Distributions

A Small Business Perspective

Marvin Cruz, Director of Research

Workers’ compensation insurance is entirely funded through mandatory employer premiums and investment earnings. Ideally, provincial/territorial workers’ compensation boards/commissions (boards from hereafter) should aim to adequately balance their funding to protect the compensation benefits of injured workers in the long-term, while at the same time preventing the volatility of premiums or overcharging employers. Boards, however, should not accumulate large surpluses in their funding as it deprives employers of crucial resources that could be re-invested to meet the massive challenges being faced by many small businesses. This snapshot sheds light on the funding position of boards across the country and calls on boards to return excess funds to employers.