Texas Legislature in Final Stretch

Job losses during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest decrease in jobs covered by workers’ compensation in a single year, according to a report from the nonprofit, nonpartisan National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI).

NASI’s annual comprehensive study of trends in workers’ compensation reviews data from 2016 to 2020, the first year of the pandemic. It found that workers’ compensation covered almost 136 million jobs across the country in 2020, a drop of 2.1% during the five years covered by the report and 6.1% between 2019 and 2020. Despite the job losses in 2020, covered wages increased by 17% over the study period and by 1.6% in 2020.

Total benefits paid decreased between 2016 and 2020 to $58.9 billion from $62.7 billion. Total benefits paid increased by 0.5% between 2016 and 2019, but fell by 6% over the entire study period due to a 6.5% decrease in the first year of the pandemic. Cash benefits were stable, while medical benefits declined by 12% and by 11.4% between 2019 and 2020 alone.

The study also found the ratio of benefits paid to employer costs has fallen substantially in the past two decades. In 2000, benefits represented 76 cents of every dollar in employer costs. In 2020, that ratio had fallen by 17%, to 63 cents. The portion of workers’ compensation benefits paid under deductible provisions has grown substantially, from 13% in 2000 to 18% in 2020.

The report is available here.

Almost three out of four U.S. workers surveyed recently (71%) don’t think their employers follow through on safety promises, and 64% believe their employers don’t make an active effort to improve training.

AlertMedia, which provides emergency communication software to organizations, surveyed more than 2,000 full-time U.S. employees to understand their perceptions of safety in 2023 and give employers insights on better protecting their people. Among its key findings: 46% of respondents said they are more likely to stay with an employer who genuinely cares about their safety.

According to the survey, 49% of employees think the world is more dangerous today than a few years ago. Some 83% of respondents said they have experienced an emergency at work at some point in their careers.

More respondents said they are concerned about public health emergencies (66%), severe weather (61%), and technology failure (61%) than other potential emergencies affecting the workplace.

Other key findings include:

• 84% of employees think their employers can do more to make them feel prepared to face emergencies at work.
• 40% of employees believe safety training should be mandatory and regular.
• 40% of employees would feel unsafe at their workplace if their employer didn’t notify them about a safety incident.
• Only 26% of employees believe their feedback is considered when safety policies are created or updated.

When asked what their employer could do to make them feel more prepared, they pointed to the following:

• Regular updates on safety incidents and protocols (39%).
• Sharing who is responsible for emergency procedures (37%).
• Offering tips on how to stay safe (37%).
• Providing a direct line of communication in emergency situations (36%).

To review the complete survey, you may click here.

Generation Z and Millennial employees are more likely to have used mental health benefits offered by their employers than are Generation X employees and Baby Boomers, according to a recent survey.

The same survey found Generation Z and Millennial employees also place a higher value on mental health benefits than do their counterparts in Generation X and Baby Boomers.

The survey was conducted by Securian Financial, a leading provider of group life and supplemental health insurance benefits. It asked a representative sample of 2,500 working Americans about their experience with employee-offered mental health benefits.

The survey found 73% of Generation Z employees and 74% of Millennial employees had utilized their employers’ mental health benefits, compared to 58% of Generation X employees and 49% of Baby Boomer employees. Additionally, 65% of Generation Z and 60% of Millennial workers said it’s “very important” for their employers to provide mental wellness benefits. Just 49% of Generation X and 45% of Baby Boomer workers said the same.

The survey found three major reasons why employees do not use their mental health benefits:

• Two out of three employees (67%) said they feel they don’t have serious enough issues to use the services. Employees undervalue the versatility of the services provided and feel they are only for the most urgent needs.
• Worries about confidentiality are the second most common reason employees don’t use mental wellness benefits, cited by 13% of all employees who hadn’t used the benefits.
• Many Generation Z and Millennial employees are too overwhelmed or burned out. Some 21% of Generation Z and 20% of younger Millennial employees who hadn’t used mental wellness benefits said they don’t have enough time in the day to use the benefits.

The survey is available here.