Ecnomic consequences of workplace injuries and illnesses: Lost earnings and benefit adequacy
✍ Scribed by Leslie I. Boden; Monica Galizzi
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1999
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 267 KB
- Volume
- 36
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0271-3586
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Background This is the ®rst study based on individual data to estimate earnings lost from virtually all reported workplace injuries and illnesses in a state. Methods We estimated lost earnings from workplace injuries and illnesses occurring in Wisconsin in 1989±90, using workers' compensation data and 6 years of unemployment insurance wage data. We used regression techniques to estimate losses relative to a comparison group.
Results
The average present value of losses projected 10 years past the observed period is over $8,000 per injury. Women lose a greater proportion of their preinjury earnings than do men. Replacement of after-tax projected losses averages 64% for men and 50% for women. Conclusions Overall, workers with compensated injuries and illnesses experienced discounted pre-tax losses projected to total over $530,000,000 (1994 dollars), with about 60% of after-tax losses replaced by workers' compensation. Generally, groups losing over eight weeks' work received workers' compensation bene®ts covering less than 40% of their losses.