The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) is continuing to be fully funded at 115.2 per cent, meaning they’ll be able to cover future costs of all claims in the system.

Their 2018 report was laid out in the provincial legislature on Tuesday.

“As our labour force has grown over the past decade, workplace safety becomes more and more vital for Saskatchewan as we realize our economic growth potential,” WCB chairperson Gord Dobrowolsky said in a press release.

“It remains important for us to keep a solid funding position to ensure benefits and programs to cover workers who are injured at work.”

There were 48 workplace fatalities in Saskatchewan in 2018. Twenty were caused by occupational disease and 28 were due to traumatic events.

“Evidence from the International Social Security Association indicates that a focus on serious injuries and fatalities should improve the overall level of safety in the province,” WCB CEO Peter Federko said in a statement.

“We will continue to focus on our serious injury and fatality initiative as a top priority in 2019.”

Per 100 workers, 5.44 were injured in the workplace in 2018 compared to 5.25 in 2017. That’s 22,371 injured workers in the province last year.

“This demonstrates that we still have work to do. We can’t accomplish this alone. Only together can we make all Saskatchewan workplaces safe,” Federko said.

However, for the third-straight year, 88 per cent of employers achieved Mission: Zero – zero injuries, fatalities or suffering.

“This wouldn’t have been possible without the health, safety and prevention efforts of people around the province,” Federko said.

“To me, this shows how much workers, employers and provincial leaders can accomplish when we work together on workplace safety.”

Saskatchewan’s time loss injury rate increased to 1.99 per 100 workers in 2018 compared to 1.86 per 100 workers in 2017.

For further details visit WCB online.

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