I admit it. I am not up on all of the details about every industry in every province in regards to provincial Workers’ Compensation Coverage rules and policies.
Today, people work from home. Some are in the same province as their
head office. Some work in other provinces. Some work in other countries.
Recently, a Quebec based employee, working from home, fell down the
stairs during work hours. That injury went to court and it was found that the
employee should have been covered by workers compensation.
An article in The National Post stated it well. “This ruling will have an impact on business because it will further define the limits of the workplace and employers’ responsibilities.”
There are many questions that come to mind.
- What coverage is actually in your Workers Compensation Agreement?
- What responsibilities do you have, in the home of your employee to ensure your coverage is valid?
- Will your group benefit program cover an employee disability claim if that claim was not covered by Workers’ Compensation because you were not in compliance?
- What happens if your employee is working from home in your province?
- What happens if they are in another province?
- Do you have to register in that province and pay their coverage?
- What happens if they are in another country?
- And, what liability do you have as the employer that has allowed a work from home policy?
- Might your workers’ compensation coverage decline to pay because you are not covered for work at home or you did not have a policy of ensuring safety standards at your employees’ private residence?
- Might the judge have ruled you need to pay full salary because you are not in compliance with Workers Compensation?
- Have you spoken to your insurance advisor to ensure your LTD coverage will replace Worker’s Compensation if you are not in compliance?
Read the article. It happened in Quebec which has a different form of law compared to the rest of Canada. Even so, what would a judge in any other province have decided? You, the employer, need to consider these issues and liabilities.
As always, if you have any questions, reach out any time.
Jay Nadler, Employee Benefit Specialist.
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