$315 Million Comp 'Holiday' Declared by Washington State
WASHINGTON
state's Gov. Chris Gregoire announced March 12 that a partial "rate
holiday" by the Department of Labor and Industries will save workers
and employers about $315 million in workers' compensation insurance
premiums in the second half of 2007. Beginning July 1, both groups --
which pay equal amounts --will not pay the Medical Aid Fund premium for
work performed until Dec. 31. Average savings will be about 34 percent
of total premiums paid into the comp system for work performed during
this period.
Combined with a 2 percent cut in comp rates L&I adopted in
December, employers and workers will pay about $346 million less in
premiums in 2007. The rate holiday will end Jan. 1, 2008.
"In the global economy, we need to do everything we can to create and
retain family-wage jobs by recruiting businesses to our state and
helping existing businesses to expand," said Gregoire. "The rate
holiday will help businesses and will also put money into the pockets
of workers." L&I manages a comp system that provides coverage for
about 2.4 million workers and 165,000 employers.