Laws and structures compensating workers for injuries incurred on the job have been in place for 100 years in the U.S., conjuring images of a time when risks to life and limb were part and parcel of the working landscape. In reality, though, as employment has moved away from manufacturing to an information-and service-based economy, and as the workplace risks to employees have shifted from physical to mental realms, workers’ compensation has evolved in tandem with employment trends.
“Originally, workers’ compensation was fundamentally about traumatic injuries in the workplace,” says Mark Walls, Chief Marketing Officer at Safety National, and Founder at Work Comp Analysis Group. Walls, who has over two decades of experience in the workers’ compensation field, adding that “over time, you saw that start to change as occupational diseases came into play. That was an add-in to workers’ compensation that recognized that there were certain exposures in the workplace that could lead to diseases that could take years to manifest. More and more states now recognize repetitive trauma claims, which tend to occur gradually over time, and create wear and tear on the body.”
Economy, technology making workplaces safer than ever before
Over the course of this evolution, the workplace has become increasingly safe. Much of that is due to a steady reduction in physical risks as jobs have shifted to a service and information economy. And in jobs that still carry significant potential for accidents, technology is helping create safer workspaces.
“You’re starting to see things like wearable technology being used in construction,” says Wells. “Wearables can track someone’s location, body temperature, and can detect if there’s a fall. It’s a fantastic technology that allows you to literally monitor your workforce in real time.”
Walls emphasizes that these types of technologies are helping to push the accident frequency trend downward.