Employer rights and responsibilities

Register your business with the WCB within 30 days of the start of your operation.

If you don’t register your business with the WCB within 30 days of your first day of work, you will be charged an additional five per cent of the premiums for each year you should have been registered. The penalty will not be less than $5, nor greater than $500 for each year of non-compliance.

Report a work-related injury to the WCB within five days of being made aware of it.

You are required by law to report work-related injuries within five days of being made aware of them. Failure to do so may result in fines or prosecution, or both. Filing an Employer’s Report of Injury (E1) is quick and easy online. Late reporting slows down the claims process. Prompt reporting helps your worker get the benefits they are entitled to sooner and helps get them back to work faster.

Submit your Employer’s Payroll Statement (EPS) by Feb. 28 each year.

If you file your EPS after the Feb. 28 deadline, you will be charged five per cent of the previous year’s actual premium every 30 days until the statement is received, to a maximum of 15 per cent. In addition, voluntary or optional coverage may be cancelled. If the EPS is not returned or is incomplete, a payroll amount may be estimated on your behalf and you may not be eligible for an experience rate discount. You are able to file your EPS online.

Pay your annual premiums on time.

If your payment is late, you’ll be charged interest at the Bank of Canada rate as of Oct. 31 of the previous year, plus six per cent.

Provide an adequate payroll estimate.

If your actual payroll is higher than the estimated payroll by more than 50 per cent, a six per cent underestimate penalty may be charged. When the actual payroll is less than 50 per cent of the estimated payroll, the overestimate credit may be given. You can revise your payroll estimate online at any time throughout the year.

Report the wages for each worker up to the WCB’s maximum assessable earnings each year.

Under Section 137(2) in The Workers’ Compensation Act, 2013 (the Act), the WCB is required to set a maximum assessable wage rate for each year.

You only need to report wages for each worker up to the maximum assessable earnings each year.

Obtain clearances for contractors.

A clearance is a letter from the WCB telling you if you can make a payment to a contractor for completed work. If you do not obtain clearances for contractors, you could be liable to pay the WCB up to the full amount of the contract.

It is your duty to accommodate workers return to the workplace after a work-related injury.

You must make every reasonable attempt to help a worker return to the workplace. This may require changes to the job, workstation or in some cases, finding other temporary duties for them. You cannot dismiss or treat an employee differently because of an injury or illness.

Accommodating workers helps them remain a part of the team. It can allow value-added work to get done and it lowers your overall costs. If your worker is still at home or in hospital, you have a duty to keep in contact with him or her.

Provide a safe workplace.

Provide a safe and healthy workplace. Set up safety and injury prevention programs. Learn the safety regulations governing your business activities, the safety obligations for your workers and your workplace and how to complete general health and safety training.