WorkSafeBC will maintain its average base premium rate at $1.55 per $100 of assessable payroll in 2026, marking the ninth consecutive year without change to the rate employers pay for workers’ compensation coverage.
The rate remains below the expected cost to operate the system. The average cost rate for 2026 is projected at $1.83 per $100 of assessable payroll, with the 15 per cent difference funded through surplus reserves.
The organization will return approximately $570 million in surplus funds to employers in 2026 by pricing rates below system costs, according to WorkSafeBC.
Industry rate changes vary
While the average base rate holds steady, individual industry rates will shift based on claim costs and safety performance. About 39 per cent of B.C. employers will see their industry base rate decrease, 47 per cent will experience increases, and 14 per cent will see no change.
WorkSafeBC adjusted its rate-change parameters for 2026 in response to economic uncertainty. Rate increases for industries are capped at 10 per cent, down from the usual 20 per cent maximum. Rate decreases can reach approximately 40 per cent, double the typical cap.
Industries receiving significant rate reductions include sawmills at 40 per cent, framing or residential forming at 39.9 per cent, dairy farming at 32.2 per cent, restaurants at 25.6 per cent, prehospital emergency health care at 23.5 per cent, and retirement homes at 13.4 per cent.
Surplus funds declining
WorkSafeBC projects it will have returned $3 billion in surplus funds to employers between 2019 and 2026 by maintaining premium rates below operating costs.
The organization’s funded ratio stood at 141 per cent at the end of 2024, down from 142 per cent in 2023. The surplus totalled just under $2 billion at year-end 2024, compared to $2.1 billion the previous year.
WorkSafeBC’s Board of Directors has set a target funding level of no less than 130 per cent of liabilities to provide financial stability and avoid rate volatility during economic or investment downturns.
Rate pressures ahead
WorkSafeBC reported it continues to face upward claim-cost pressures and a declining surplus, which could lead to moderate premium rate increases in the near future if trends continue.
The Workers Compensation Act requires WorkSafeBC to set premium rates annually. Premiums fund costs associated with work-related injuries or diseases, health care, wage loss, rehabilitation, and administration.
The workers’ compensation system operates independently through employer premiums and investment returns. WorkSafeBC receives no funding from the provincial government.
WorkSafeBC will announce preliminary 2027 rates in July 2026.
In 2024, premium income totalled $2.4 billion, an increase of $156 million over 2023. Total claim costs on the funding basis, excluding administration, reached $3.2 billion in 2024, up $258 million from the previous year.
The organization’s investment return in 2024 was 11.6 per cent net of fees, compared to 8.4 per cent in 2023. The B.C. Investment Management Corporation manages WorkSafeBC’s Accident Fund investments.
