You know you need a safety program!GDI Insurance Agency has all the resources you need to help understand that true workplace safety is more than just a simple policy. With the materials highlighted in this workplace safety roadmap, you can provide resources targeted to their need and keep loss control initiatives top of mind-protecting your company’s bottom line.
The Value of Safety
Some employers simply don’t realize the value of safety and the potential cost savings. GDI Insurance Agency, Inc. has created workplace safety roadmap solutions to help you understand and take control of your:
Safety Culture
MOD
Injury Management
Workers’ Compensation
Return to Work Program
Gain Buy-In from Senior Management.
Safety cultures are built from the top down, making management support crucial to safety program success. We will help educate senior management on the benefits of building and maintaining a safety program. Broaden your conversation beyond the basics – not only do safety programs minimize accidents and hold down indemnity, GDI promotes loss control through improved employee morale and reduced absenteeism.
Deliver the WIIFM (What’s in it for Me?)
Are you aware of their responsibilities under OSHA’s General Duty Clause? Do you know how much lost revenue employee absences are costing your company annually? We can Illustrate how employee safety prevents fines, reduces losses and increases revenue.
Financial Impact of Work-Related Injuries Presentation
General Industry Risk Insights: Safety Programs and the Impact to Your Bottom Line
General Industry Risk Insights: Focus on Safety and Health to Benefit Your Business
Safety and Health Audit
Set the Tone
From day one, employees at all levels of the organization should understand the importance of workplace safety. GDI Insurance Agency can help you ensure management, trainers and employees are educated on regulations by furnishing your business with the tools necessary for success.
Elements of a Successful Safety and Health Program
State Guide to Safety Regulation-
Workplace Required Posters-
Employee Safety Manual – General and Industry Specific
General Industry Risk Insights: Creating a Strong Safety Culture
General Industry Safety Matters: Promoting a Safety-Minded Culture
Employee Safety Survey
Safety and Health Survey
Use OSHA to Your Advantage
OSHA compliance is essential to both building a safe work environment and avoiding costly fines. Help simplify your companies compliance issues with these easy to follow OSHA materials.
Work Comp Insights: OSHA’s Four-Point Safety Program
Required OSHA Programs and Training
OSHA On-Site Consultation Program
OSHA’s SHARP Program and Your Organization
Portable Fire Extinguisher Program and Training Materials
Portable Fire Extinguisher Program Presentation
OSHA Program Audit
Help Build and Support a Safety Committee
Even if you already have a safety committee, it may not have all the resources necessary to be successful. The following materials will help you create and support safety committee initiatives to quickly address concerns and encourage positive employee behavior.
Create a Culture of Safety
GDI Insurance Agency can help you build a culture of safety with materials that provide the knowledge and resources needed to successfully support a safety committee.
Safety and Health Committee Responsibilities
Work Comp Insights: Create a Workplace that Prevents Injuries and Increases Productivity
Safety Budget Worksheet
Safety Program “Quick Check”
Minimizing the Risk of Workplace Injury
Comprehensive Safety & Health Inspection Checklist
Deliver a Safety Incentive Program…that Works.
If executed correctly, safety incentives can be one of the most effective tools at an employer’s disposal when it comes to encouraging safety. We will make sure your safety incentive programs are a good fit for the organization’s culture and illustrate success at effectively reducing workplace accidents with the following materials:
Employee Safety Incentive Program Guide
Employee Safety Incentive Policy
General Industry Risk Insights: Is Your Safety Incentive Policy Effective
Safety Incentive Survey
Give Supervisors the tools they need
While the Safety Committee sets the tone, supervisors put the tone into action. By equipping supervisors with the tools need for success, you bring your clients closer to an accident-free workplace and become a trusted safety partner.
Help Employers Set Expectations
Managers and supervisors are busy. They need, and deserve, guidance on how to effectively execute on their safety responsibilities. Help employers communicate expectations, impart best practices and share tips with the documents below.
Supervisor Safety Responsibilities
Safety and Health Programs: Training for Employees, Supervisors and Managers
Supervisor Safety: Reducing Risks for Shift Workers
Safety Coordinator Responsibilities
Qualities of an Effective Safety Coach
Support Injury Cost Containment
Injury management can ensure that injured employees get the care they need while also minimizing claim costs. Employers should appoint a well-respected supervisor or employee to oversee injury management and return to work efforts. GDI Insurance Agency has put together these resources to help.
Work Comp Insights: Selecting and Training Your Injury Management Coordinator
Injury Management Coordinator Job Description
Disability Management Training Workbooks
Supervisor Injured Worker Preparedness Survey
Supervisor Response Training – Workplace Injuries
Support Safety Meetings and Toolbox Talks Weekly or monthly safety meetings are a great venue for promoting safety. Use our vast library of safety meeting talking points to assist you in this recurring activity.
General Industry Safety Matters: Promoting a Safety-Minded Culture
General Industry Safety Matters: Toolbox Safety Meetings- Tips for Trainers
General Industry Safety Matters: Safety Meeting Basics
Attend Your Safety Meetings Poster
Take Time to Meet for Safety
Safety Meeting Sign-In Attendance Form
Offer Employee Communications that’s Targeted and Relevant
We have thousands of documents for dozens of industries – including safety handbooks and policies, brochures, flyers, presentations, posters and payroll stuffers – all created to support your professional client services. Combined with the knowledge of your GDI Insurance broker these templates come to life to help you achieve the goals you and your broker have set for your company.
Topics that Matter
You are unique, and your safety program should be, too. Mix important safety basics with targeted, industry-specific safety communications to address their most pressing needs. Just a few samples:
Construction Playing it Safe: Ergonomics Solutions for Electrical Contractors
Manufacturing Target on Safety: What You Should Know About Hexavalent Chromium
Agriculture Playing it Safe: The Dos and Don’ts of Grain Augers
Education and Childcare Target on Safety: Know the Hazards in Your Classroom
Heath Care Playing it Safe: All About Legionnaires’ Disease
Transportation and Warehousing Target on Safety: Overview on Correctly Securing Cargo
Onboard Employees with Safety in Mind
Whether you you have dedicated trainers or are relying on front line managers and HR for employee education, we can deliver resources to help new employees understand the importance of safety from day one. Some samples:
Supervisor Safety: Reducing Risks for New Workers
Employee Safety Responsibilities
New Employee Safety Orientation Process
New Employee Safety Orientation Guide
Manufacturing Safety Matters: The New Employee’s Top Role Model- You
Construction and Contracting Safety Matters: Teaching On-Site Safety by Example
Different Resources, Same Message
Important messages are worth repeating. GDI Insurance has hundreds of choices in a variety of formats, it’s easy for employers to target employees to reinforce key safety messages and keep them at the forefront of daily operations.
Eye Safety & You Poster
General Industry Safety Matters: Selecting Safety Sunglasses
General Industry Playing it Safe: Protect Yourself from Eye Injuries
Gear Up For Safety: Eye Protection
Protect Your Vision (Payroll Stuffer)
Quiz: Eye Safety
Keeping Safety Top of Mind
Safety programs require constant attention, and maintenance. Provide resources and stay top of mind with monthly safety communication materials for management, risk managers, supervisors and employees.
Short on time? In 10 minutes or less you can support your safety and return to work programs by subscribing to one or more of the following monthly Campaigns:
GDI Insurance Agency has invested in programs and systems that we have organized, and will customize and tailor to your needs. We have taken caring to the next level. We are here and equipped to help you do something about it! Contact us today 1-888-991-2929
With the recent changes to the California Insurance Marketplace, specifically the recent adjustments by the Workers Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (“WCIRB”) to the way in which Experience Modification Factors (“X-Mod”) are calculated; many organizations were not prepared for the full impact of the changes. It can be especially burdensome for Nonprofit Agencies and Service Organizations that may have a higher susceptibility to loss than other organizations.
Further, Service and/or Mission Oriented Nonprofit Agencies and Nonprofit Organizations have a unique exposure when it comes to injuries to workers (and volunteers) – they typically care too much.
Experience Modification Factor Calculation Change
The WCIRB recently adjusted its way of calculating an organization’s X-Mod by doing away with the fixed value for the Primary Threshold for Losses and replacing it with a formula that creates a sliding scale, Effective January 1, 2017. This sliding scale is intended to give a larger Primary Threshold to larger employers (i.e. Organizations with larger payrolls).
The impact we’ve seen has been a compounding of the impact/magnitude of losses on an organization’s X-Mod, which in turn equates to a similar impact to their Workers Compensation premium.
We recently witnessed one of our Nonprofit agencies clients have an increase in their X-Mod of nearly 15% due almost entirely to the change in the calculation. We’ve been working diligently with this Nonprofit as they have approx. 50 employees and volunteers and this 15% increase in their X-Mod will result in an increase in Workers Compensation premium of no less than $18,000 for just this year alone.
Employees at Nonprofit Agencies
If we take a quick moment and think of a Nonprofit, Service Organization, etc. that we are fond of; what is one of the key components of what makes that Nonprofit, Service Organization, etc. successful? It’s the PEOPLE. The people care, and many times they can care too much. Unfortunately, many times it’s the same people who care so much for the organization that can expose it to unnecessary financial hardship due to an injury.
Example: A Nonprofit is serves meals to members of the community in need. One caring employee sees that there is a pallet of food that needs to be put away. This employee takes it upon themselves to roll up his/her sleeves and “help out”. The pallet contains 40-pound boxes of frozen meat and it needs to be put in the walk-in freezer. The employee feeling the cold of the freezer decides to hurry, twists while lifting one of the last boxes and suffers a lower back injury.
In the example, the employee’s motives were altruistic, however depending on the severity of his/her injury the Nonprofit could be facing steep insurance premium implications. Sadly, this situation happens all too often amongst both employees and volunteers in Nonprofits and Service Organizations.
Volunteers
Many Nonprofit organizations depend, either in whole or in part, on the work and contribution of volunteers. Volunteers are a seemingly “No-Brainer” for Nonprofits to utilize as much as possible, and while this is true there are some potential costs that Directors, Board Members, etc. should be cognizant of.
Although Volunteers do not create a payroll expense, they do create a risk to insurance
Injuries sustained by Volunteers are treated the same as those to Employees
The Cost implications of Volunteer injuries are the same as those of Employees
X-Mod implications are compounded and/or Multiplied by Volunteer injuries
a.The X-Mod is calculated using both Payroll (reduces the factor) and Claim Cost (increases the factor) – Volunteers only contribute to the Claim Cost
To better insulate the Workers Compensation Cost Structure of any Nonprofit, Service Organization, or any other organization for that matter; training and accountability become critical. Although volunteer labor is commonly discounted as “not costing anything”, volunteers should be treated and trained the same or as similar as possible to regular employees.
The best Defense is ALWAYS a good offense, and the same is true in defending against claims. Training, guidance, and open dialogue as to why it is needed can provide incalculable benefits to the organization’s Workers Compensation Cost Structure.
Construction contracts can contain terms that impact your company’s bottom line. Reviewing them carefully prior to signing is indispensable, and can save your company time and money. This contract review guide is meant to be a starting point for reviewing contracts in general. It highlights some common contract terms and their potential impact. You can begin to understand which terms are most often negotiated in contracts generally. Then, with the help of licensed inside or outside counsel, analyze the commercial risks associated with construction contracts in depth and understand terms and conditions to protect your company’s assets. Contact GDI Insurance Agency, Inc. for your construction insurance quote 209-634-2929.
Scope of the Agreement
Examine the definition of services to be provided to ensure the language is clear enough for an unrelated third party to understand the scope of the construction contract. The contract should include a time frame for completion of services. The rights and obligations of both parties should be clearly outlined. Any mechanism for changing the scope of the contract, as well as any of the terms, if allowed, should also be outlined within the contract.
Terms of Payment
Terms of payment should be clearly listed within the contract so that the expectations of both parties are clear. The contract should specify the agreed payment schedule for goods received.
Warranties
There are two types of warranties: express and implied. Both types are assurances regarding particular issues, such as performance.
Express warranties are those that are defined specifically in the contract. Implied warranties are based in statutory and/or common law, depending upon your jurisdiction. They are two-fold: a warranty of merchantability, which requires that goods/services must reasonably conform to an ordinary buyer’s standards, and a warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, which states that if a seller knows the intended purpose for the product or service, the act of selling the product to that customer implies that it is fit for that purpose.
Be aware of warranty disclaimers and understand how the disclaimer limits your statutory rights. If it disclaims all warranties, express and implied, then you will likely be limited to the remedies in the contract for issues related to things like performance. You should also examine any disclaimer in the context of the contract. While it may require you to disclaim your statutory rights, other contract language may give you adequate rights and remedies regarding the points about which you are most concerned.
Damages, Limits of Liability and Indemnification
These three items are often in close proximity to one another in a contract, as they are interrelated. Damages may be defined as certain types of losses that could create liability under the contract. A limit on liability would restrict the amount of damages that a party would be required to pay if found liable for such damages. Sometimes this may also include a limit for indemnification.
Indemnification provisions allocate risk and cost between the parties. It is important to examine whether the party assuming the risk is the party with the most control over that risk. For instance, when a company’s employees are required to work at a customer’s location, the company is often asked to release the customer from all liability relating to the employees presence at the customer’s location.
In some cases, indemnification is limited to negligence or to a specific dollar amount, under a heading of “limits of liability.”
Construction Insurance
Some contracts will contain minimum bodily injury and property damage liability coverage amounts that the party must possess and also may require that the customer is added as an additional insured on those coverages.
Prior to consenting to any contract, it is prudent to examine construction insurance coverage against the amount of liability exposure in a particular contract.
Terms and Conditions in Your Construction Contract
It is also vital to examine any terms and conditions contained in the contract:
Governing Law & Jurisdiction – Look at the governing law provision to make sure that you are comfortable with the implications of the state law chosen by the drafter. This can impact the interpretation of the contract from warranties to indemnification.
Additionally, when specific statutes or regulations are referenced in the body of a contract, it is as though that statute or regulation is wholly contained within the contract itself. It is vital to read and understand that language prior to giving your consent. This happens regularly in government contracting situations.
Dispute Resolution – This is another clause with which you must be comfortable with the laws of the state or forum chosen by the drafter. The rules chosen to govern dispute resolution can impact the outcome. Additionally, you should consider whether dispute resolution is right for your situation.
Intellectual Property – When you are disclosing and/or licensing your company’s intellectual property, be it trademarks, copyrights or patents, it is important to include a clause that recognizes the owner of such intellectual property and affirmatively states that the agreement does not transfer any rights.
Standard of Care – A standard of care clause may appear in certain types of contracts. The standard of care that is provided by the law should provide the minimum standard of care for the provision of services under the contract.
Term/Termination – The contract should provide both parties with the right to terminate the contract. The situations in which termination is allowed will vary from contract to contract. Some contracts will allow the right to terminate in cases of dissatisfaction; others will allow it with a specific notice, for no cause. It is important that you contemplate in what cases you would want the right to terminate the contract. There should also be language defining the term of the contract. Does it have a finite term? Does it automatically renew each period?
Right to Cure – Related to termination, some contracts will contain a right to cure clause. This would give the defaulting party notice of a breach and a finite period of time in which to remedy such a breach.
Standard Form Contracts
Unlike other industries, construction lacks a consistent set of laws like the Uniform Commercial Code or a federal statutory scheme. Contracts produced by professional and trade associations for architects (American Institute of Architects), engineers (Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee) and commercial contractors (Associated General Contractors of America) can serve as important references and benchmarks when drafting a new contract. They are a good source of industry best practices, and using them can greatly reduce drafting and review time, meaning lower overall transaction costs for your company.
For all of their advantages, there are several things that you should be cautious about when using standard form contracts. Note the following cautions about standard forms before using them:
Standard forms, which are written broadly to encompass many different contexts, require transaction-specific and jurisdiction-specific modifications. For example, certain states require that indemnities be written in a certain way.
Changes made to one part of the document, such as definitions of words or terms, may affect other parts that make reference to it.
Custom-drafted and industry-drafted forms are often incompatible. Even industry-drafted forms from different publishers can be incompatible.
Standard forms always contain the bias of the drafter. Use this bias; know when to use various standard forms published by different industry organizations.
General Understanding
Reviewing general terms and features of construction contracts will help you grasp the consequences of its terms and conditions for your business. In any case, to ensure its completeness and accuracy, it is necessary to submit each contract you must sign to legal review.
The Importance of Employee Practices Liability Insurance
California business leaders make decisions each day on a range of issues including things like hiring, firing, compensation, promotions and the work environment. Every one of these decisions impacts your employees and, depending on the outcome, could result in a claim related to wrongful employment practices. Protect your business with California employment practices liability insurance.
These claims can disrupt business, hurt morale, damage your reputation and lead to serious financial damages. Thankfully, employment practices liability insurance(EPLI) can provide organizations with protection from the above risks.
Specifically, EPLI insurance provides the following to policyholders:
Coverage for Alleged Acts
EPL insurance not only protects organizations from actual wrongful acts, but alleged acts as well. Specifically, Employment Practices Liability Insurance coverage can safeguard an organization from claims related to discrimination, harassment, retaliation and wrongful termination.
Timely Response to Lawsuits
Employees suing their employers is common, and organization will want to be prepared. This is especially important when you consider that there is no cap on how much a jury can award that settlements in employment-related cases can easily reach six figures.
Access to Legal Help
Strong EPLI policies provide the insured with access to legal resources. This can prove invaluable if you need advice quickly.
Risk Management Strategies
While employment-related lawsuits can arise at any time, organizations that take the time to implement basic risk controls are better equipped to avoid claims altogether. Many insurance companies provide access to risk managementtraining and human resources consulting. These services can greatly reduce the likelihood that your company is sued by an employee.
Additional Protection for Your Directors and Officers
While directors and officers insurance (D&O) can defend against employment-related lawsuits, dedicated EPLI insurance is necessary for many organizations. Having a policy that provides separate coverage for lawsuits connected to wrongful terminations, discrimination, invasion of privacy and similar employment claims ensures that the limits on your D&O policy aren’t exhausted unnecessarily.
GDI Insurance Agency, Inc is your California EPLI Specialist
Want to Learn More About EPL Insurance? We’ve got more great information on our Research Center.
Claims in California for wrongful employment practices are on the rise and often lead to business interruptions and costly claims. In order to truly protect your organization, it’s critical to get EPLI Insurnace. To learn more contact Grant Davis at 1-888-991-2929. GDI Insurance Agency Inc. can help protect your business from costly employee-related lawsuits.
Especially in California, every company, regardless of industry and size, should have an employee handbook to help guide their employees’ behavior and protect them from potential lawsuits such as a wrongful termination. Make sure these important policies are included in every employee handbook. GDI Insurance Agency Inc. has built out extensive Human Resource programs that include employment handbooks, Onboarding Toolkits, and OSHA documentation, that is included for all of our clients at no additional cost.
Make Sure You Include These Items In Your Employee Handbook
At Will Employment – Employers can destroy the at-will employment relationship through promises made in an employee handbook. Including this policy in handbook reinforces the at-will nature of employment. It should also state that the handbook is not a contract and may change at any time.
Equal Employment Opportunity– This policy should comply with national (Title VII, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, etc.), state, and local anti-discrimination laws. Include protections based on race, religion, creed, color, sex, age, national origin, disability, military service, and other protected categories such as marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or transgender status.
Pay and Hours of Work – An employer’s pay practices, including when the workweek begins and ends, payroll periods, and deductions from pay, should be included. The policy should include overtime rules such as when nonexempt employees are entitled to work overtime and any pre-approval procedures that are required.
Family and Medical Leave – Employers subject to FMLA must inform employees of their eligibility and rights under the act. Include whether employees need to exhaust paid time off before taking FMLA leave, that benefits will continue during leave, and that they may resume the same or equivalent job when they return. Also include other company requirements, such as medical certification or notice requirements, and any applicable state and local leave rules.
Safety – The safety section of the handbook should affirm the company’s commitment to their employees to provide a safe and healthy work environment. It will vary by industry, but it should align with the OSHA requirements that apply to the company, including health and safety policies, emergency preparedness plans, and equipment safety and use guidelines.
Attendance and Tardiness – Employers may use a range of procedures for attendance, but it’s important to lay out the company’s guidelines and expectations for how much notice is required, who to report absences or tardiness to, and disciplinary actions that may be taken if procedures are not followed.
Standard of Conduct – Employees look to the organization to provide them with the “rules of the road” for workplace behavior. Policies should include organizational rules to help employees understand what is expected of them while at work and what behaviors may result in disciplinary action.
Anti-Harassment – This policy should be comprehensive, effective, and realistic. It should define harassment, set forth avenues for reporting it up through the executive level or board of directors if the boss is the alleged harasser, and offer a degree of confidentiality and support. It also needs to include an anti-retaliation
statement. It’s important this policy reach beyond sexual harassment to include people in every protected category.
Internet and Electronic Communication – A well-drafted policy reminds employees that company computers and networks exist for business purposes and not for personal activities. It should clearly state that there is no expectation of privacy on work computers and security is not guaranteed.
Military Leave – This policy should inform employees of their right to unpaid military leave under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, including their right to elect to continue health plan coverage for up to 24 months.
GDI Insurance Agency Inc. Your Trusted Insurance Broker
Learn how you can offer your company the protection of a fully compliant, federal and state handbook. Contact us today at 1-888-991-2929.
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