The Department of Labor and Industries is looking for about 500 employers willing to participate in a new way for workers to file workplace injury and occupational disease claims.

The state Legislature this year approved a two-year pilot project giving employers and their workers the option of filing workers' compensation claims through the employer. Up to 500 employers will participate in the project the first year, and as many as 250 more will be added in fiscal year 2008.

Between now and October, Labor and Industries will be lining up employers interested in participating in the project. If you are interested in learning more, please send an e-mail to EmployerReporting@LNI.wa.gov.

Unlike most states, workers' compensation claims in Washington are filed through injured workers' physicians rather than through employers. The doctor is then responsible for sending the accident report to Labor and Industries.

Labor and Industries will be recruiting large, medium and small employers in various occupations, locations and industries for the pilot project. Labor and Industries will evaluate injury claims over two years to determine if reporting of claims through employers results in lower claim costs and better outcomes for workers. Because Labor and Industries will be measuring claim results, only employers who regularly have, or who Labor and Industries would anticipate having, workers' compensation claims can participate.

"We believe this will benefit employers as well as injured workers," says Robert Malooly, assistant director of Labor and Industry's Insurance Services Division. "Employers who know about a claim early are in the best position to keep a worker on salary or offer light-duty work while they recover. That lowers claim costs and maintains the connection between the employer of record and his or her injured worker."

Malooly said the project also would take some of the paperwork burden off physicians who treat injured workers.

"We asked the Legislature to authorize the employer-reporting pilot project as part of our ongoing efforts to improve management of the workers' compensation system," says Malooly. "We have intensive work under way in many areas to improve the timeliness of claims processing, control costs, get workers back on the job more quickly, become more efficient, combat fraud and improve our customer service."

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