Hiring Slowdown, Wage Growth Create Mixed Outlook for Comp

A sharp slowdown in hiring paired with continued wage growth is creating a mixed outlook for the workers' compensation system heading into 2026, according to a first-quarter economic briefing released Thursday by the National Council on Compensation Insurance. While overall economic growth remained stable in 2025, the report points to a weakened labor market, with job gains totaling just 116,000 for the year — the slowest pace outside a recession since 2003. That slowdown, however, has not translated into a proportional decline in workers' compensation premiums, Boca Raton,...