The NY WC reforms are going to significantly reduce workers comp premiums –a point that many of the legislation’s critics are all but ignoring.
Restaurants, dry cleaners, and health clubs will see a 40% reduction; nursing home premiums will drop 37%, tool manufacturers 38%. These cuts will improve the viability of these businesses, and in the case of manufacturers, potentially keep jobs in the Empire State. Nursing home margins have been suffering for several years; WC premiums are a significant cost so the reform is quite meaningful.
Yes, the legislation has problems, and some of these may well be significant. On balance, increasing benefits for workers while cutting costs for employers is good. One can, and many will, argue about the details and call for additional improvements (me being ‘one of the ones’).
But compare where we are today to where we were this time last year – a dysfunctional, expensive, frustrating system with costs well above most other states and worker benefits near the bottom.
What does this mean for you?
To probably mangle a quote from Plato, “do not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
