ARTICLE · 17 OCTOBER 2016

Workers compensation changes in NSW leave injured workers in the lurch

Stacks Law Firm

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The changes to the scheme four years ago have given only limited help to injured workers wanting to return to work.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

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A study by Macquarie University has found changes the government made to the NSW workers compensation scheme four years ago have given only limited help to injured workers wanting to return to work.

Professor Ray Markey of the university's Centre for Workforce Futures led the study, titled The Impact on Injured Workers of Changes to NSW Workers' Compensation: June 2012 Legislative Amendments. The study examined the process by which injured workers return to work and the obstacles they face in doing so.

Cost savings achieved by cutting compensation payments to injured workers

The government's rationale for revamping the scheme in 2012 was that it was in crisis, with a reported deficit of $4.1 billion. However, by October 2013 the government reported that the scheme was no longer in deficit, even though employers had been granted a 7.5 per cent reduction in compensation premiums in the interim.

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