The Victorian WorkCover Authority’s (VWA’s) half-yearly results reveal that fewer Victorians are injured at work, more workers are returning to work after injury, and the Victorian scheme continues to be financially sustainable.
The VWA Chief Executive Denise Cosgrove said the results were an encouraging sign that the Victorian economy is responding positively to a challenging global environment.
“Our results show that there has been further improvement in safety and return to work rates in Victoria, which is a real credit to Victorian employers and their continued efforts to make workplace safety a key priority,” Ms Cosgrove said.
“Victoria achieved a record low injury rate of 7.51 claims per million hours worked at 31 December 2013, down from 7.72 at 30 June 2013, building on the record safety results recorded in 2012/13.
“The positive half-yearly results showed the organisation’s approach to managing the fundamentals was sound and the VWA recorded a performance from insurance operations result (PFIO) of $119 million,” Ms Cosgrove said.
The PFIO was the most insightful measure of the scheme’s performance, given it focused on the fundamentals that management could control, such as operational costs and its claims management ability.
“Maintaining control of operational costs and claims liabilities is always a challenge, so it is pleasing to see that we have been able to deliver another positive result in this area,” Ms Cosgrove said.
“The VWA’s net result after tax was $679 million, influenced by strong investment returns and more favourable economic conditions.
“The valuation result at $90 million is strong and significantly above the level recorded for the same time last year, which was a result of -$11 million.
“Traditionally, actuarial release for December is a lower figure than the full year result and over the last decade has included valuations which have been negative.
“And the average injury insurance premium rate continues to be the lowest rate in the country.
“The VWA is performing well into the second year of its five-year strategy and we are working to achieve our 2017 targets.
“Our aim is for Victoria to maintain the best workplace safety and workplace injury insurance scheme in the country, and so far we have made excellent progress towards those targets,” Ms Cosgrove said.
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