Electronics manufacturer saves $85,500 in 3 years

INSURED
The business is an electronics manufacturer that employs 110 workers.

SITUATION
After splitting from a large national manufacturer, the company saw its Mod jump to 1.45, causing uncompetitive labor costs and a loss of profitability.

ASSESSMENT
It was determined that the increase in the Mod was a result of an increase in the severity of repetitious injuries to hands and wrists, due to the type of light assembly work involved. The Mod was also being driven up by a number of malingering claims and too much reliance by the manufacturer on their insurance company to manage the claims after they happened, resulting in higher premium costs. The manufacturer had no established recovery-at-work procedures nor 24-hour claim reporting requirements.

SOLUTION
The focus was on lowering the severity of the hand and wrist injuries and improving the outcome of the malingering claims. An occupational clinic relationship with pre-employment testing, including grip testing to eliminate potential future claims was set up by the CWCA. A clinical relationship was also put in place for existing claims, the CWCA set up a recovery-at-work process and made the clinic aware that transitional duty was available as a recovery-at-work option. This assured early intervention, proper medical treatment and a speedier return to work.
The CWCA also trained supervisors on 24-hour reporting requirements and the impact that Workers’ Compensation has on the employer’s costs, and started regular safety trainings. Furthermore, he worked with management to demonstrate the value of this process by showing them how much money they would save.

RESULT
Malingering has been eliminated and outcome from severe claims has been reduced from $35,000 to $6,500, resulting in savings of $85,500 for three years.