5 Ways a PEO Helps Manage Workers’ Compensation

Quick look: Managing workers’ compensation can be complicated and costly for small businesses. Fortunately, partnering with a professional employer organization (PEO) can ease the burden. Learn how a PEO and workers’ compensation go hand-in-hand to reduce risk, improve compliance, and support your workforce.

As businesses grow, so do their HR demands. For many small and medium-sized business (SMB) leaders, managing human resources (HR) can be time-consuming and complex, given the volume and importance of the work involved.

One area that can be particularly complex is workers’ compensation insurance. This is especially true for smaller organizations with higher risk factors, multistate operations, or staff who travel regularly for business.

Fortunately, solutions exist to simplify these responsibilities, allowing companies to focus on other meaningful initiatives. For example, professional employer organizations (PEOs) can oversee workers’ compensation and provide other valuable HR services, as well.

Here are five ways that PEOs streamline workers’ compensation for their customers:

1. PEOs fully manage workers’ compensation systems

Maintaining adequate workers’ compensation coverage is essential in today’s business world. However, administration and management can be costly in terms of time, resources, and stress.

Each state has its own workers’ compensation requirements, posing a challenge for SMBs with dispersed workforces. Additionally, the costs associated with workers’ compensation insurance vary regionally. PEOs oversee the entire process on their customers’ behalf, helping them navigate all applicable mandates.

SMBs benefit from a PEO’s group buying power, often resulting in more affordable premiums, broader coverage options, and rate stability. Some PEOs also offer a pay-as-you-go program for workers’ compensation, significantly reducing expenses in certain instances.

Choosing a PEO to manage your workers’ compensation insurance means no deposits, no deductibles, no year-end audits, or other hassles that come with acquiring it independently.

2. PEOs can improve workplace safety

Maintaining a safe work environment is complicated, especially for organizations with elevated risk or field operations. However, doing so is critical for preventing workplace injuries, keeping your team safe, and minimizing workers’ compensation claims.

SMBs that partner with a PEO gain access to risk management experts who help implement workplace safety programs. These professionals educate employees on fostering a safe work environment and examine the business’s claims history to identify possible accident trends.

PEOs can also develop personalized workplace safety action plans that incorporate immediate workplace safety improvements and ensure continuous improvement through safety maintenance programs.

Working with risk and compliance experts enables companies to highlight and address areas of concern, reducing the likelihood of workers’ compensation claims.

3. PEOs offer personalized claim management

Even in the safest workplaces, unexpected incidents can occur. When they do, having a clear and efficient claims process is essential.

PEOs take workers’ compensation responsibilities from slow and complicated to effective and accurate. Employers who work with a PEO gain access to a personalized claims management team that ensures all claims are handled quickly, thoroughly, and in a compliant manner.

4. PEOs help develop return-to-work programs

If a workplace accident results in a workers’ compensation claim, a return-to-work program can benefit both employers and employees.

A return-to-work program proactively enables injured employees to resume working as soon as they are able, often on a modified or part-time basis during recovery. Most PEOs can assist SMBs with creating a personalized plan for their company.

These programs help businesses create a direct cost benefit while empowering healing employees to stay involved during their absence and gradually transition back into their roles as they get well.

5. PEOs keep you compliant

Legislative changes at the federal, state, and local levels can have a profound impact on businesses of all sizes. And navigating the ever-evolving HR compliance landscape, including state-by-state workers’ compensation requirements, can be a major challenge for SMBs.

PEOs specialize in guiding businesses through this complexity, helping them adhere to not only workers’ compensation laws at each level of the government, but all employment regulations.

As mandates are introduced or existing rules are updated, PEOs proactively ensure that their customers meet the new guidelines and remain compliant.

Experience worry-free workers’ compensation with ExtensisHR

At ExtensisHR, we take the complexity out of workers’ compensation and help growing businesses mitigate risk more effectively.

In addition to managing workers’ compensation, we offer:

• Workplace safety programs: Our professionals develop and implement a custom workplace safety program tailored to your business. During this process, they examine your claims history and identify trends, train staff on your company’s safety program, and ensure you stay compliant with all workplace safety, employee notices, and claims reporting requirements.
• Employer Protection Program (EPP): We help you design workplace practices to minimize the time, costs, and risks associated with issues like discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, cybersecurity, and more.
• State unemployment insurance (UI) and management: Our UI claims professionals review employee separations, ensure proper coding, collect supporting documentation, and respond to states for adjudication of an unemployment claim.

A PEO’s scope also reaches far beyond risk and compliance solutions. For instance, ExtensisHR delivers access to Fortune 500-level employee benefits, dedicated HR Managers, and full-cycle recruiting services at no additional cost.

Ready to reduce the strain of managing workers’ compensation? ExtensisHR has the coverage, compliance, and claims support you need to protect your business and your people. Learn more about our workers’ compensation solution or contact us today to get started.