In going through wire service things seen something that set me back a bit when I read the article. The initiative to allow privatization of work comp will make it to the ballot and in addition the Governor has started a process of some negotiated reform.

This is a gut check thing. In my job my employer was large enough to be self insured, no bitches really. Other small business though are getting ate up by the high cost of the state run program. The purpose of the initiative as I get is to allow for L&I to be sold to employers with the same benefits but lower cost.

Somehow this seems to be a contradiction in terms as lower cost = lower benefits in most things. I know rates are sky high with the small businesses I worked with but what drives this thing? My employers L&I cost were about 5% of state L&I and that was with the cost of the safety program.

After dealing with health insurance I can just see what private L&I would be. The cost? Why are L&I rates so high? Same job comparison, my employer 20+ cents hour, state L&I over $4 and hour. What drives this? Bad employers? Bad management?

Not a huge fan of government but it has a place and the laws to protect workers health and welfare are important and we are to trust contracting them out so to speak?

What am I missing here?

http://www.washingtonstatewire.com/home/3843-workers’_comp_initiative_a_sure_bet_for_fall_ballot.htm

Link to wire service article and it is going to get on the ballot with a bunch of others.

I'm leary of this one. I fully expect the lower costs to translate into lower benefits. Business isn't seeking this initiative to better provide for workers. They're seeking it to reduce their costs and increase their bottom line. In the spirit of another thread, capital wins; labor loses on this one. Guess I'll be agin' it.

Sg

as someone who has had to deal with a self insured company plan i will take the state anytime

I know I rarely post anything here any longer, but this got my attention. As a former business owner I thought that L&I was fairly reasonable and consistent. I paid less for insurance than I did for B&O and I owned a residential electrical company, not the safest job I suppose. However, as long as everyone was safe and no one got hurt, rates never increased. Liability (private) was much more expensive and I saw hikes regularly eventhough I've never made a claim. I've never seen private insurance businesses do me any good, really. I remember that once the insurance companies got car insurance mandatory in WA, they decided to start using credit scores to jack up premiums. I heard horror stories from friends as they watched premiums increase by 100% because they didn't know how to pay their credit card bills on time. As far as private health insurance goes, well, try and get your bills paid (after having made all of your payments on time) when you have a pre-existing condition. On the same tangent, look what the insurance lobbyists did for healthcare reform. Didn't seem to be in anybody's best interest besides the insurance lobby to make insurance mandatory for citizens, with tax penalties as the incentive if you don't fall in line. Frightening to think what they would do to the state L&I system if they got their greedy hands on that. Privatize liquor, socialize (kinda) state industrial, it works, why break it?

Just a bump