THE VALUED VOICE

Worker’s Compensation Advisory Council Members Reach Agreement

The Worker’s Compensation Advisory Council (WCAC) voted during its meeting on Nov. 17 to support a group of proposals affecting the Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation Program that will become the biennial “agreed upon bill” it recommends to the Legislature for consideration. The agreement includes a proposed increase in the permanent partial disability compensation rate, a revision to a rate calculation method for part-time employees and several proposals from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Unlike agreed upon bills from the last several sessions, the WCAC did not include a health care provider fee schedule in its agreement. 

The WCAC includes five voting members representing organized labor, five voting members representing management, and three non-voting representatives of the insurance industry. Each legislative session, the WCAC recommends changes to the Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation program to the Legislature, which then considers the WCAC’s recommendations.