Worker's Compensation Board

What is WCB?

The WBC or Worker’s Compensation Board, is a neutral body tasked with administering the Worker’s Compensation Act in all provinces.

What is the Worker’s Compensation Act?

The Worker’s Compensation Act is provincial legislation that regulates the Worker’s Compensation Board

Guiding Principles of the worker’s compensation system

No fault compensation
Workers are eligible to receive benefits for work-related injuries no matter who is at fault.
Collective Liability
All employers in covered industries share responsibility for funding the cost of workers’ compensation insurance
Immunity from Lawsuits
Participating employers and workers have immunity against lawsuits for work-related accidents by others who participate in the systems
Exclusive jurisdiction
The Workers’ Compensation Board has exclusive legal authority to make all decisions arising under the Worker’s Compensation Act
Fair Compensation and fair premiums
Compensation should be fair and take into account both the nature of the injury and the impact on employment earnings. Premiums should be fair and competitive and account for full-funding of claims, reserves, and the costs of administering the system. The workers’ compensation system is a liability and disability insurance system designed to protest both workers and employers against the impact of work-related injuries.
Benefit of doubt to worker
Adjudication decisions are made in favour of the injured worker where all evidence for and against is equally balanced.
Comprehensive injury prevention and disability management
The system provides a comprehensive range of services to both prevent and manage disabilities
Long-term stability, financial security and cost effectiveness
The system is structured and operated in ways that ensure its long-term stability and financial security as well as its overall cost-effectiveness.

When to report an injury

You should report your injury as quickly as possible after reporting to your employer. If your injury is not reported, WCB has no record of your claim. Your employer is required by law to report to WCB within 72 hours of acquiring knowledge that a work-related injury occurred.

Injuries that require reporting:
WCB covers work-related injuries or diseases that cause you to need medical aid or time away from work. These include:
- Injuries that cause (or are likely to cause) you to be off work beyond the day of injury
- Injuries that require modified work beyond the day of injury
- Injuries that require medical treatment beyond first aid
- Injuries that may results in a permanent disability

Injuries NOT considered work-related:
- pre-existing or underlying health problems (diabetes, arthritis, old sports injuries, etc)
- injuries that occur while routinely commuting to and from work
- Injuries arising from serious and willful misconduct
- Injuries that happen outside of work

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES:

- Use your claim number when your write letters or call WCB
- Follow the treatment plans developed by your health care providers
- Keep your appointments with your health care provider
- Talk to your physician about your progress so you understand when you can return to work
- Inform WCB of any changes in your medical recovery
- Talk to your employer regularly about your progress
- Tell WCB when your doctor tells you that you are fit to return to work. If you do return to work early, make sure you understand and follow any work restrictions so your re-employment is safe for both you and others.
- Advise WCB if you stop working or need to change your duties because of your injury
- Keep receipts for costs directly related to your workplace injury
- Advise WCB is you will be leaving the province or moving.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR BENEFITS

Ø Worker’s compensation benefits start the next working day after you are injured
Ø You should receive your first wage loss benefit payment from WCB within 14 days of WCB registering your new claim.
Ø You will be paid wage replacement benefits as long as medical evidence shows you are unable to return to work due to your injury
Ø Compensation benefits are not taxable. You must report your worker’s compensation benefits to the Canada Revenue Agency. WCB will send you a T5007 by the end of February
Ø Compensation benefits are protected from inflation. Long-term workers’ benefits are reviewed to determine if a cost of living increase should be applied
Ø If traveling out of province, you MUST get permission from your doctor and WCB to confirm your trip will not delay your recovery

WCB is available in all provinces and have different forms and regulations. Please ensure that you check the information if you are filing in another province. If you are injured in the U.S.A or even another province, you can still claim through Alberta.

Claim Management may vary from province to province. Please consult these websites or your WCB Coordinator if you have questions:

British Columbia
http://www.worksafebc.com/default.asp

Alberta:
http://www.wcb.ab.ca/workers/

Saskatchewan:
http://www.wcbsask.com/

Manitoba:
http://www.wcb.mb.ca/

Ontario:
http://www.wsib.on.ca/wsib/wsibsite.nsf/public/homepage

Quebec:
French: http://www.csst.qc.ca/portail/fr/
English: http://www.csst.qc.ca/portail/en/


H&R Transport Limited is proud to be active in the involvement of your claim management.
If you have any questions, concerns or need to report an injury, please contact
Sherri Wollenberg in Human Resources at 1-800-661-8044 or 403-328-2345

Child Benefit In Canada

Immigrants to Canada can claim child benefit as soon as they become Permenant Residents although the paperwork can be a little daunting, once you have got your information together it will take you about an hour to fill in the forms on-line, print them off, stuff them into an envelope and post them off.

This is how i did it:

Went on the Canada Revenue website http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html
Applied for the online security codes to do it all online
Waited 2 weeks for the password to come through the post
Tried to do it all on line
Realised the principle applicant should be the mother (Doh!).
Swore and cursed a bit.
Luckily it gave links to the various forms so i filled in and printed off
photocopied Lukes passport and PR card
Stuffed it all into an Envelope and sent it to the Tax Office in Winterypeg.

Here is a checklist of all the forms you need including the one to have it paid straight into the bank.

T1-DD1 E (08)

RC66 E (09)

RC66 SCH E (09)

Apparently it is paid every 6 months, not sure excactly how much its worth, i think it should be about $700 per year........ we will wait & see.