Platta: Potential Changes in Workers' Comp Law for 2023

Friday, December 16, 2022 | 0

The most important thing in industry is the person who does the industry, which is the worker ... Labor is the only source of wealth.

— Eli Siegel

Slawomir Platta

While many states, cities and counties seem to be willing to pass employment laws and regulations at any time, the first day of a new year is still the number one day for new employment laws to take effect. And 2023 will be no exception. Here is a selection of some notable compliance obligations employers will soon face.

California

• SB 1162 — pay transparency. SB 1162 creates new employee-facing pay transparency obligations and a new California Civil Rights Department (CRD) pay data reporting obligation.
• AB 1949 — bereavement leave. This bill amends the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) to require that covered employers provide employees with up to five days of bereavement leave for the death of a qualifying family member.
• SB 523 — no discrimination based on “reproductive health decision-making.” This bill amends the California Fair Employment and Housing Act by adding “reproductive health decision-making” as a new protected classification.
• SB 1044 — no adverse action during a state of emergency. This bill prohibits an employer, in the event of a state of emergency or an emergency condition, from taking or threatening adverse action against any employee for refusing to report to, or leaving, a workplace or work site within the affected area because the employee has a reasonable belief that the workplace or work site is unsafe.

Connecticut

Connecticut businesses will see another rate decrease in workers’ compensation insurance beginning on Jan. 1, 2023. The Connecticut Insurance Department has officially approved an average decrease of 3% to workers’ compensation pure premium loss costs in the voluntary market. There will be no change in rates for the assigned risk market. This marks the ninth consecutive year rates have declined, with premiums cut by $300 million over this span, reflecting decreases in the number of workplace injuries and claims filed, according to the state.

Idaho

Workers' compensation rates in Idaho will decrease 11.5% in 2023, the Idaho Department of Insurance has announced. The reduction in rates will go into effect Jan. 1, 2023. In 2022, Idaho was the 14th most expensive state in the country for employers to purchase coverage. The Idaho Department of Insurance accepted the reduction in rates following an annual rate recommendation from the National Council on Compensation Insurance. Workers’ compensation insurers can now either adopt the NCCI rates without modification or propose to the department’s review an adjustment from NCCI’s rates.

Michigan

As of Oct. 1, 2022 (through Sept. 30, 2023), Michigan’s new work loss and survivors’ loss benefit payable shall not exceed $6,615 per single 30-day period. This is an increase from the previous year’s maximum work loss and survivor’s loss benefits for the previous year, which was $6,065 per single 30-day period.

New York

• SB 2928 adds siblings to the definition of a family member for paid family leave.
• NYC Int. No. 1894-2020 requires an employer that uses an automated employment decision tool to screen a candidate for an employment decision to notify each such candidate regarding the use of the AI tool.
• NYC Int. No. 0134-2022 amends the city wage transparency provisions to clarify the positions for which a pay range must be provided; establishes a private right of action for employees.
• Westchester County Ordinance No. 2022-119 makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to advertise a job, promotion or transfer opportunity without stating the minimum and maximum salary for the position in the advertisement.
• Stronger enforcement of workers' compensation wages after a serious accident.

Washington state

The state Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) is proposing a 4.8% increase in the average price employers and workers pay for workers’ compensation insurance next year. If adopted, the increase would mean employers and workers would jointly pay an additional $61 a year, on average, for each full-time employee within a business.

Three states have pending COVID-19 legislation for workers:

• Massachusetts' H 2414 and H 2650 would establish a COVID-19 presumption for certain public safety personnel and first responders. The bills are pending in committee.
• Pennsylvania's HB 2514 would establish a COVID-19 presumption for certain first responders, and HB 2515 would establish a COVID-19 presumption for employees of certain health care providers. The bills are pending in House Committee.
• Rhode Island's H 7718 would establish a workers’ compensation presumption for COVID-19 or other viral infections, classified by an executive order, during a declared state of emergency. The presumption would be applicable to specified health care workers, first responders and other essential workers. The bill is pending in the House committee.

Returning to work is the foremost priority for workers’ compensation organizations globally, which support the health and wellness of injured workers. Externally, WCOs are facing increasing pressures, including rising customer expectations, a shift in the nature of work, and changing economic, socio-cultural and political landscapes. These factors are requiring WCOs to reevaluate their approach to empowering injured workers and improving their return-to-work outcomes in a highly dynamic market, all of which is reflected to some degree in 2023’s upcoming changes in workers’ compensation law.

Slawomir Platta earned his degree from the University of Florida Levin College of Law. He’s been handling construction accident cases throughout the courts of New York for almost 20 years and has been featured as a Super Lawyer consecutively since 2015.