Employee Risk Management: Reduce Your Workers' Compensation Costs

As work environments become safer, the number of workers' compensation claims continues to decline. At the same time, the cost per claim has risen 27 percent in the last four years, making the business

The 2006 U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that businesses spend an average of $26.86 per hour for each employee. This includes salary, as well as benefit expenses such as health insurance, vacation time, and workers' compensation benefits. Overall, 70.1 percent (or $18.83) of the hourly compensation given to employees goes toward salary, and 29.9 percent ($8.03) goes toward benefits, with 1.8 percent ($0.14) of that benefit percentage making its way to workers' compensation. Although 14 cents an hour doesn't sound like much, it adds up over time and can severely impact your business expenses, particularly if this per-hour amount increases.