(WINNIPEG - May 5, 2000) -- The Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba today released its 1999 annual report with a commitment to keep premiums low and continually improve service, but also with a concern that workplace injury rates are too high.

Since 1996, the average premium paid by the nearly 23,000 employers covered by the WCB fell by 34 per cent, from $2.25 per $100 of accessible payroll four years ago to $1.49 today.

Pat Jacobsen, the WCB's President and Chief Executive Officer, said the WCB will strive to keep "our costs and premium rates among the lowest in the country," but warned "that continued high accident frequency would cause upward pressure on rates if unchecked."

The injury rates among covered workers is higher in Manitoba than anywhere else in Canada, though the annual report said that other jurisdictions covered a greater proportion of lower-risk industries, which have lower overall injury rates.

Nonetheless, Ms. Jacobsen said that the rate of injuries in Manitoba has been growing during the past few years.

"Rather than wait for more accidents and claims to process, we're focusing our efforts on accident and injury prevention . . . in partnership with the province's Workplace Safety and Health Division, employers, workers and their respective associations," she said.

She said the WCB is also working "toward quicker reporting of workplace accidents and illness, better continuity of employment income and enhanced customer satisfaction," and is "amending over a dozen policies, which will enable us to promote a worker's return to health and work as soon as possible."

As part of efforts to reduce the number of injuries, the WCB said earlier this week that it will be changing the way in which premiums are set to ensure that they are not only fair to employers, but also serve "as an incentive for employers to focus on safety."

The WCB announced that it will hold public hearings on the new premium-setting model in seven locations across the province to hear "from anyone who has information, thoughts or concerns that can help us resolve these challenges," Ms. Jacobsen said.

The public consultation hearings are scheduled for Thompson on May 23, Flin Flon on May 24, Portage la Prairie on May 26, Brandon on May 29, Winnipeg on May 31 and June 1, Winkler on June 2, and Beausejour on June 3.

Contact: Ed Shiller at (204) 954-4458