Officials from the state Department of Labor & Industries gave Washington employers a bit of unexpected good news Monday: They are proposing no increase in the average workers' compensation insurance rate for 2013.
The news followed speculation this summer that workers' comp rates could skyrocket in order to rebuild the state's reserve fund.
But L&I Director Judy Schurke told members of the Workers' Compensation Advisory Committee the scenarios described a few months ago were never intended to be the department's proposal.
After laying them out, department officials took into account suggestions from representatives of labor and business and then got a little more creative in how they crunched the numbers.
AWB's Kris Tefft, who helped push for the 2011 reform measures, credited Schurke and L&I for listening to the business community's concerns and acting on them.
"I think the department was very responsive this summer to those concerns," he said.
Elsewhere:
The News Tribune: State L&I calls for flat workers comp rate in 2013
Washington State Wire: No Increase in Workers Comp Rates for 2103 Says Department of Labor and Industries - Dramatic Reversal Follows Fury From Business
Department of Labor & Industries: L&I proposes no increase in workers' comp rate for 2013
