Long Beach recently received the Outstanding Achievement for a Public Risk Management Program for its Workers’ Compensation Program Revamp – a comprehensive, citywide overhaul of the way the City implemented the program. The new program will reduce Workers’ Compensation costs by millions of dollars annually while drastically reducing the amount of time lost to workplace injuries.
The award was bestowed by the Virginia-based Public Risk Management Association, whose mission is to promote effective risk management in the public interest as an essential component of public administration.
“This is really a positive result for the City and its taxpayers. We are successfully achieving two distinct goals, which are not always seen as compatible. On the one hand we have reduced costs, and on the other we have improved our treatment of injured employees,” said City Attorney Robert Shannon.
Implemented in 2004, the program has saved the city millions in total workers’ compensation costs, and new return-to-work policies saw total lost work hours decrease 39-percent.
“By insuring a healthy workforce and reducing costs associated with employee injuries, the City can insure the best possible services to the community with the resources it has,” said Human Resources Director Suzanne Mason.