The Ontario government will move ahead with a plan to increase financial help for people hurt on the job.
Ontario Labour Minister Monte McNaughton announced on Wednesday that the government will direct the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) to investigate options on increasing compensation for workers who become ill or injured while on the clock.
McNaughton said the objective is to provide more funding for the families of those workers who get sick or hurt on the job while keeping employers’ premium rates under control.
“Under our government, the WSIB has been brought to its strongest financial position in history,” said McNaughton. “Exploring an increase in compensation of up to 90 per cent, is just one of a series of historic steps we are taking to support injured workers in our province, as we continue to drive change at the board to ensure it is working for workers and employers.”
At the moment, WSIB benefits for an injured worker amount to 85 per cent of the workers’ pre-accident take-home pay. Should the amount be raised to 90 per cent, it would give a worker earning $60,000 a year an additional $2,315 annually.
The WSIB is an independent agency funded by employers. Any plan that is finalized by the WSIB would need approval from the Ontario Legislature before it would take effect. This would likely not happen until after the June provincial elections.
The Ontario government has authorized the board to distribute over $1.5-billion in surplus funds back to over 300,000 safe employers, to help these businesses recover from pandemic-related losses, invest in health and safety, and create more jobs.
McNaughton’s announcement came days ahead of the annual WSIB Day of Mourning, where workers across Canada killed on the job are remembered.
The plan has brought criticism from the Official Opposition. NDP Health and Safety Critic Wayne Gates said the announcement has not gone far enough.
“For four years, Doug Ford’s Conservatives have denied workers’ injury claims and taken money that belongs to injured workers and given it to big corporations instead,” said Gates. “Now, days before an election campaign, they’re making promises that, in the future, they’ll do the opposite. Workers know better.”
