NU's WC Risk Management Award Winners Share Secrets Of Success

What does it take to keep people from being hurt on the job and get them back to work as fast as possible when injuries inevitably occur--all while treating them with respect and concern, and without busting your loss control budget? To see how the best in the business handle such challenges, check out the profiles of this year's three winners in the third annual National Underwriter Award For Excellence In Workers' Compensation Risk Management. They share the secrets of their success in a series of profile in our WC RM Award section.

The winners--presented with their awards during this year's Workers' Compensation Educational Conference, as part of the National Trends program put together by NU--are role models for their peers:

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.

It might be described as a $21 million wakeup call when six years ago senior management at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. discovered that their workers' compensation claims had spiked dramatically.

INTEGRIS Health

The guiding loss control philosophy that employees who are under less physical strain have a smaller chance of suffering a job-related injury helped Oklahoma-based INTEGRIS Health hold its workers' compensation medical costs steady since 1998 despite an 8 percent inflation rate and a payroll that has more than doubled during that time period.

Snap-on Inc.

If you go through a checklist of workers' compensation benchmark metrics between 1999 and 2008 for Snap-on Inc., you'll find savings and decreases across the board--highlighted by a 42 percent drop in ultimate losses and a 71 percent cut in claims frequency per $1 million of payroll, for example.

The winning trio gathered in person to discuss the challenges facing risk managers today, during a panel discussion at the Workers' Compensation Educational Conference in Orlando on Aug. 18:

Award Winners Cite Best Practices In Workers' Comp Risk Management

Every company executive is on the hot seat in this difficult economy, and risk managers are no exception. But those who can cut workers' compensation claim frequency and severity, as well as get injured employees back on the job faster while boosting both productivity and morale, will still be sitting pretty with their senior managements, according to the heads of three award-winning programs.