Alaska tops rankings of state workers compensation rates: Study
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Employers in Alaska, California and Connecticut faced the highest workers compensation rates for 2012, according to a biennial study produced by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services.
The 2012 Oregon Workers' Compensation Premium Rate Ranking Summary, released Tuesday, ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on rates that were in effect Jan. 1, 2012. It shows that the 2012 nationwide median value is $1.88, which declined 8% from the $2.04 median in Oregon's 2010 study.
This year's study shows that, of 51 jurisdictions, employers in North Dakota paid the lowest costs at $1.01 per $100 of payroll. That is 53% of the national median.
In contrast, employers in Alaska paid the highest rates, averaging $3.01 per $100 of payroll, or 160% of the national median. Connecticut employers paid $2.99 per $100 of payroll, which is 159% of the national median. California employers paid $2.92 per $100, or 155% of the national median.
“You're beginning to see rankings tighten as states adopt the types of reforms that Oregon pioneered years ago,” DCBS Director Patrick Allen said in a statement.
Oregon officials often point to their study to showcase their state's favorable business climate. The latest study ranks Oregon as having the 13th-least expensive workers comp rates in the nation, at $1.58 per $100 of payroll or 84% of the national median.
Lawmakers and workers comp policymakers across the country often rely on the DCBS study when arguing for reforms or policy changes.
The state rankings are available here.
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