The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS) announced that pure premium rates for workers' compensation will decrease an average of 1.3 percent for 2010; however some employers will see rates go up and others will see no change.
This marks the fourth consecutive year of decreases and the 20th year without a rate increase.
The pure premium rate is the base rate employers pay for workers' compensation insurance coverage. It is set by DCBS, based on a recommendation from the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI).
DCBS also announced that its proposed premium assessment is unchanged at 4.6 percent in 2010 (4.8 percent for self-insured employers and employer groups). The premium assessment percentage will not be final until after a hearing scheduled for September 29. In addition, the hourly assessment rate will be unchanged.
DCBS estimates the rate decrease will save Oregon employers $18.1 million in 2010. The reduction reflects a successful effort to make Oregon workplaces safer. Workplace injury and illness rates in Oregon have declined nearly 19 percent since 2004, and more than 50 percent since the late 1980s.
Oregon's workers' compensation rates began their downward trend in 1991, with Oregon employers realizing cumulative savings of $17.4 billion, while benefits and services for workers have improved.
Read the DCBS news release
View DCBS' pure premium rate history
View DCBS' pure rate fact sheet (includes changes by industry group)
View DCBS' pure rate Q & A