The WSIB (Workplace Safety and Insurance Board) of Ontario has announced that construction employers in the province will not be subjected to premium hikes if any of their workers become infected with COVID-19.

“We have determined that costs associated with COVID-19 related claims will not be allocated at an employer or class level. Instead, they will be allocated on a Schedule-wide basis and there will be no change in premium rates for 2020,” the agency said in a recent post on its website.

The agency also said that it is offering a financial relief package to all Ontario businesses to help relieve them of financial burdens caused by the pandemic. This package was developed in consultation with the provincial government and is worth up to $1.9 billion.

Under the relief package program, businesses can defer premium reporting and payments until August 31, 2020. A release from WSIB listed the following payments as eligible for deferral:

• Monthly: March 31, April 30, May 31, June 30, July 31, Aug 31
• Quarterly: April 30, July 31
• Annual: April 30

All businesses covered by WSIB’s workplace insurance are automatically eligible for the relief package.