review of the 1985 Accident Compensation Act would be
conducted by Mr Peter Hanks QC. In making the announcement,
the Minister for WorkCover, Tim Holding declared:
"Victoria's WorkCover scheme... the best in Australia, offering
generous benefits and good return-to-work outcomes for injured
workers as well as low premiums for employers."
This is not an accurate observation by the Minister. To be
injured at work is bad enough, but to be injured in Victoria
is even worse.
WorkCover in Victoria holds the record for rejecting new claims
by injured workers. It rejects 14.1%, yet in Queensland only
3.8 % are rejected.
Mr Hanks has finished his review (June 2008) and he will give his
report to the Minister in August.
He will make at least 130 recommendations to change WorkCover.
If the government adopts many of his recommendations the WorkCover
scheme will suddenly get a whole lot worse.
WorkCover is the most profitable system of workers compensation in
Australia. It makes a profit of more that $1 billion a year and
pays more than $700 million a year into state government coffers.
Since 2004 it's cut employers' premiums by 45% saving them $2 billion.
Under the Hanks recommendations premiums will be cut by another
6% - reducing even further the funds available to care for injured
workers.
Despite WorkCover's profits and its gifts to employers, it still
fails to provide quality care and financial support for injured
workers.
It's time to do something. Instead of making WorkCover worse for
workers, the government needs to make it better.
We want every Victorian to let the government know that it's time
WorkCover was for workers, not for employers.
Cut and paste this address and to send a message to the government: http://fixworkcover.org/sendletter.php
title='Help fix WorkCover' border='0'>
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