Now that a national OHS framework has taken shape for Australia, the debate about workers’ comp harmonisation looms large. In the spirit of constructive conversation between stakeholders, we asked the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) to give us their perspective on the direction Australia needs to take to get good outcomes for employees and employers.

There are definite differences between the harmonisation wish-lists of these two stakeholder groups.

For the ACCI, the focus is on reducing red tape and increasing consistency between jurisdictions, without necessarily moving to a national workers' comp scheme. They envisage the federal government as playing a pivotal role in promoting cooperation between the states and territories, and undertaking extensive stakeholder consultation.

The ACTU wants nationally consistent standards, a rollback of private involvement and a better, more predictable system for workers. They believe that research is the way forward, calling for an injury  profile of the Australian economy to ensure that the new model is best practice.

As yet, there's no real harmony between employer and employee groups, but is a handshake out of the question? See their perspectives below in more detail, and you be the judge.

RTW Matters: What are the essential elements of a workable national workers’ compensation system?

ACCI: There is considerable scope to further reduce the human and economic loss that arises from injury and disease at work.  The total cost of work-related injury and disease is borne by workers, employers and the wider community.

Large businesses operating in more than one state ask why Australia has six separate state workers’ compensation systems, two territory systems and another for public servants and commonwealth enterprises.

Small businesses are less concerned about a national scheme but they do need better quality workers’ compensation regulation.

Debate about workers’ compensation arrangements for national companies raises some difficult questions.

For example, would small and medium sized employers be disadvantaged if large companies used a national system?  Is Australia’s population large enough for state compensation systems to compete with a national system?  Would a national system simply create a larger bureaucracy or be harder to change when required?

Competition between schemes might be better than a single national scheme.  If there is value in competition then we need viable state and territory schemes.  Taking actions that weaken their viability would be counterproductive.

These issues require extensive discussion and debate by all key stakeholders.

Consistency should be sought in the following areas of workers’ compensation:

• Access and entitlement – common definitions for key terms such as “injury” and “worker”;
• Formulae for calculation of premiums;
• Benefits – calculation of weekly payments, and definitions and classification of various levels and periods of incapacity;
• Insurance regulation – e.g. licensing, monitoring and auditing of insurers, self insurers and other providers and reporting requirements;
• Rehabilitation – employers’ and employees’ obligations on return to work; and
• Dispute resolution – the use of cost effective dispute resolution mechanisms is critical to maintenance of an affordable workers’ compensation system.

ACTU Assistant Secretary Geoff Fary: The ACTU supports nationally consistent standards in rehabilitation and workers’ compensation.

Any plan to improve workers’ compensation must involve ComCare returning to its original function as the scheme applying only to Federal public servants.

All private sector participants should be returned to the applicable State or Territory run scheme/s.

A nationally consistent workers’ compensation scheme must achieve the following:

• A return to ‘no-fault’ compensation for all work-related injuries and diseases;
• The availability of rehabilitation and compensation to all workers' for all injuries that arise out of or in the course of work;
• Reform of the payments system, which effectively shifts injured workers onto social security benefits; and
• Fast and effective conciliation of workers’ compensation disputes by an independent tribunal.

RTW Matters: What process is going to make harmonisation happen?

ACCI: As a national compensation system can be set up only by the commonwealth, and because the private sector operates under state and territory systems, progress can be made only if commonwealth, state and territory governments work together. 

There should be co-operation between jurisdictions in order to identify those elements that should, as far as possible, be consistent across all schemes. 

However pursuit of consistency must involve proper consultation with all relevant parties, in order to achieve the best possible outcomes.

ACTU Assistant Secretary Geoff Fary: The ACTU believes nationally consistent standards must be evidence-based and is calling on the Federal Government to commission research to provide an injury profile for the entire Australian economy. This would provide the necessary basis from which to develop a best-practice model for workers’ rehabilitation, return-to-work and compensation systems in Australia. 

There is also a need to examine the extent of cost shifting by workers' compensation schemes onto injured workers and government services, including the public health system and social security.

RTW Matters: Which Australian jurisdiction currently comes closest or are you advocating a complete revamp?

ACCI: ACCI advocates discussion between all key stakeholders to assess the current status of Australia’s workers’ compensation systems, identify aspects which are working well and areas in which improvement is required, generate options for improvements, and gain agreement on a model for implementation that will facilitate reductions in the incidence and cost of workplace injury and illness.

ACTU Assistant Secretary Geoff Fary: No Australian jurisdiction has a scheme that could be considered a best-practice model.

Workers’ Compensation policy will be discussed at the triennial ACTU Congress in Brisbane next week.