WSIB mandatory for construction firms

New rules for 2013 will improve safety: Ontario government

Every month an average of two construction workers are killed in Ontario.

In 2011, 21 workers in the industry died, said Council of Ontario Construction Associations (COCA) president Ian Cunningham.
Amendments to the province’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Act were passed in 2008 to make workers’ compensation coverage mandatory for independent operators, sole proprietors, some partners in a partnership and some executive officers who work in the construction industry.

Right now, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) coverage is optional for independent operators, sole proprietors, partners and executives.

The change, which will occur when the amendments become law on Jan. 1, 2013, is happening in part to improve safety, said Ministry of Labour spokesperson Matt Blajer. 

 The amendments will strengthen health and safety, the ministry said. Not having coverage undermines health and safety in construction, said Blajer.

“In terms of improving workplace health and safety, well, if they have the coverage the employer’s also going to make sure they’re working safely because it’s going to bring the rates up if they have an accident,” he said.

The changes also mean independent contractors have access to health and safety services from the WSIB-funded Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA), an Ontario organization that develops sector-specific partnerships and supports the implementation of prevention services, said Blajer.

 “So getting connected to the health and safety system is a side benefit too — that’ll help us drive (the number of deaths) and all the other metrics around health and safety down,” Cunningham said.

In addition to improving the safety landscape in the industry the government says the amendments will help snuff out illegal work.

The idea of mandatory coverage in construction has been a topic of discussion for many years, said Blajer.

“This is nothing new,” he said. “It’s been in discussion in the industry for many years.”

The law, at least in part, stems from a desire to quash the underground economy in the industry. Proponents of the amendments say it will stop those operating unscrupulously who undercut above-board operators.

 “It contributes to the underground economy because people who play by the rules, legitimate operators who got coverage, had higher expenses so they couldn’t bid as low,” said Blajer.

This is one of the reasons COCA supported Bill 119, the legislation that made the new requirement law.

“COCA supported Bill 119 because we’re guided by the principle that every worker who qualifies to receive WSIB benefits should have premiums paid on his behalf and clearly an independent operator who became injured while working would qualify for benefits even though he did not pay premiums,” said Cunningham.

Although COCA is supportive of the change, Cunningham doesn’t think those impacted by higher costs will be.

“I think most independent operators are not supportive of the bill,” he said. “They liked not having to pay WSIB premiums, so there are people in the industry on both sides of the issue. But that notwithstanding, they enjoy an insurance benefit so they ought to pay for it.”

Members of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) are concerned about the increased costs, said Plamen Petkov, director of provincial affairs for Ontario, CFIB.

The CFIB has about 40,000 members in Ontario and about 10 to 12 per cent of those members are in the construction industry, said Petkov.

 “Our members in that sector are very concerned of the financial impact that mandatory coverage will impose on their bottom line,” said Petkov. “Now is not the time to impose more payroll tax increases on small businesses in the province. By imposing a higher payroll tax burden… that’s not really the way to stimulate economic growth and job creation.”

The CFIB doesn’t think the new legislation will achieve its objectives of flushing out the underground economy, said Petkov.
“We just don’t see how this is going to happen, actually we are convinced that the exact opposite is going to happen,” he said. “Every time when you impose a new tax or a new premium more and more operators will actually be tempted to operate underground.”

Despite opposition to the changes, the government is moving ahead and implementing the amendments.
 The WSIB kicked off a pre-registration period for the coverage in January.

This allows those needing to register as a result of the new legislation, or those with existing WSIB accounts who need to make changes, the time to do so, said Christine Arnott, a spokesperson with the WSIB.

Pre-registration is free, and there are no premiums to pay until 2013. Pre-registered accounts will be automatically converted to a registered account on Jan. 1, 2013.

The response to pre-registration has been quite positive, said Arnott.

“People are pleased to have the opportunity to become familiar with the new rules and requirements on their own timeline,” said Arnott. “Many people have already taken advantage of the opportunity to pre-register their account.”

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