Cutting Comp Costs

by Shari Farmer

At the Press-Telegram in Long Beach, Calif., we have four major programs to help cut worker's compensation costs. We also streamlined our procedures to ensure better efficiency and care.

Proactive Programs. Our safety committee meets monthly. Its members include not just managers, but also workers and clerical people. The committee walks through the entire building twice a year. We also have operating-committee walkthroughs. Once a month, our building-services manager walks through the entire building with one member of our operating committee. Every executive walks through the entire building at least once a year.

Training Programs. Our occupational-health nurse and insurance company train employees to be repetitive-stress-injury trainers. Peers are much more effective in getting fellow employees to use the correct equipment, sit the right way and take breaks.

We license forklift drivers. People have to understand that driving a forklift is very different from driving a car, since a car doesn't have a gigantic weight on the front end.

We have a very active hearing-conservation program. Our pressroom understands it. Other areas, though, aren't used to it and need guidance, particularly our mailroom, where we have a coin-counting machine and an envelope stuffer.

Our material safety data sheets are in a central location, but until recently, the employees didn't understand where they were, what they were, how to read them or what to do in an emergency. The same holds true with labeling. Training here is crucial to proper use and understanding.

Ergonomic Programs. We take a proactive approach to purchasing ergonomic equipment, such as chairs, desks, wrist rests, glare screens, and headsets. It hasn't been cheap, but we've been able to show payback in reduced workers' comp costs.

Enforcement Programs. Newspapers run the risk of his being sued if something bad happens while an employee is driving. We require our people to have proof of insurance. We also ask drivers to bring in their own DMV report. If they've had more than three moving violations or at-fault accidents in the last three years, they can't drive for the paper.

We have a form that gets the supervisor involved in finding out why an accident happened and how it can be prevented in the future. We discipline people for not following safety instructions. Also, our managers' compensation is partly based on numbers of accidents and lost time. When you deal with people's pocketbooks, they take notice.

Procedures. Our third-party administrator is an integral part our process. We have monthly meetings where we talk about the status of each claim. We also have an 800 number, so that when someone opens a workers' comp claim, we can give the TPA the information and complete the necessary forms.

If someone has a situation that they feel is work-related, we send them to the doctor immediately. We have what's called a first-aid-only program, so that if someone doesn't need to miss work, we don't open a claim. We also have a contract with a hospital, no appointment necessary. Their doctors toured our facility so they can have a clear understanding of our employees' jobs and how situations occur that result in claims.

Finally, we have a return-to-work program. As a company with six unions, we can't just bring someone back and put them in any old position. And although this program was tough to implement, it has also proven very beneficial.

Shari Farmer is human-resources manager for the Press-Telegram of Long Beach, Calif. Phone is (310) 435-1161.