On September 26, the government of Ontario announced that Workplace Safety and Insurance Board ("WSIB") premium rates for employers will be reduced due to a steep reduction in the WSIB's Insurance Fund's unfunded liability.
In the announcement, the provincial government stated that "the WSIB will be able to cut the average premium rate for employers by almost 30 per cent, starting January 1, 2019." According to the WSIB, premiums for Schedule 1 employers will decrease from an average rate of $2.35 on every $100 of insurable payroll in 2018 to an average of $1.65 on every $100 of insurable payroll in 2019.
The unfunded liability is the shortfall between future obligations to pay injured workers and the money available to pay them. It was an estimated $14.2B in 2011, but had decreased to $4B in 2016 and only $2.6B in 2017 after the WSIB and the provincial government increased premiums and improved administrative efficiency.
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