The Portage Township School District in Indiana is an example of an organization with high numbers of employee injuries that was able to incorporate better safety measures into their work and lower their rate of injuries and in turn, their workers’ compensation costs.

The district has eight elementary schools, two middle schools and a high school. Just a few years ago things were so bad in terms of the amount of injuries at work and the costs incurred that carriers were refusing to offer them comp coverage. Their workers’ compensation claims were over one million dollars and the district turned to self-insurance since no one would cover them. They selected JWF Specialty Co. as their TPA.

The administration started a campaign centered on the “ABC” message or “Always Be Careful”. They focused on improving accident investigations, as well as training employees in better safety awareness and hazard recognition. The staff attended monthly meetings about this safety program to reinforce and further the message.

The program started to slowly reduce injuries at work and related costs. Before this program started and the district had started to self-insure, the district reported an average of 68 claims a year with an average cost of $11,678 per claim. In 2012, ten months after the switch, they reported 39 claims filed at an average cost of $4,301 a claim.

Last year injuries at work decreased further and the district paid $154,000 in workers’ compensation costs, a far cry from the million they were paying out before and the second lowest amount of claims in the past eight years. The superintendent even hopes that the school board approves his plan to give every worker a $107.50 stipend to thank them for their hard work and support in reducing injuries at work.