April 14, 2011

The fate of meaningful workers' compensation reform may rest with employers.

A significant reform to bring fairness and predictability to the workers' compensation system in Illinois failed April 14 after 28 Democrat Senators hit the yellow "present" button rather than vote for reform.

The vote on SB 1349 prompted Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) to urge employers to contact legislators and the Governor to keep up the pressure.

“I will continue to work with Sen. President Cullerton and my legislative colleagues to ensure workers’ compensation reform remains a legislative priority throughout the remainder of the session,” Radogno pledged. “However, I urge job creators to continue to appeal to their state lawmakers and Gov. Quinn to make sure we do not let this opportunity slip away.”

Radogno said the fact that a majority of Democrats opted to vote "present" and avoid taking a clear position on the issue demonstrates the power of the issue and should show local employers and business organizations that if they ratchet up the pressure meaningful reforms can be approved.   

During debate Republican lawmakers from across the state rose to tell of local employers who are considering moving out of state due to the high cost of workers' compensation. One of the most concerning statements came from freshman Sen. Darin LaHood (R-Peoria) who recounted how in a meeting with Caterpillar, the company revealed that a plant in Illinois has annual workers' compensation costs of over $3 million while an identical facility in Indiana had costs of just over $500,000.

Caterpillar's chief executive, who recently warned Gov. Quinn that they were being actively courted by other states, has said that high workers' compensation costs are a major concern of the company.

With the third highest workers’ compensation rates in the country—three times higher than those in Indiana and twice as expensive as Missouri’s rates—Radogno stressed that workers’ compensation reform is the most important issue of the Spring 2011 legislative session.

Radogno said the most important—and most contentious—issue is “causation,” which simply requires that an injury or illness be directly related to the workplace. Senate Bill 1349 required that at least 51% of the injury be connected to the workplace.