The Comp Alliance is pleased to announce it will be issuing a Workforce Reduction Credit Refund for all our members for the 6-week period beginning March 16, 2020 through the end of April.

We recognize and appreciate the extraordinary efforts our members have undertaken to continue to provide essential service to the public. These changes include adjusting work schedules, changing work duties and encouraging work from home where possible (telecommuting). The result is a temporary reduction in workload and capital projects. With fewer employees working, scaled down operations and capital projects put on hold, the Comp Alliance is giving back to its members. In the next week, we will be issuing checks to our members equal to a 10 percent reduction in funding for the 6-week period beginning March 16, 2020.

One of the founding principles of the program was providing an up front, predictable cost for workers’ comp insurance. Since our inception, we have not conducted payroll audits after a coverage term is complete, and we do not have any intention of doing so now. The temporary changes in workforce and operations, however, prompted us to perform an internal review of our job-classifications and develop an appropriate response.

Using information provided by our sponsoring associations, New York State Conference of Mayors and Association of Towns of the State of New York, we have identified several adjustments our members have made to their daily operations. While these adjustments vary considerably by individual member, we focused on common threads, considered the re-classification of the most impacted municipal operations, and developed a credit that we will apply uniformly to our members. We will continue to monitor changes in municipal operations and workforces as we transition to reopening in the coming weeks.  

We wish everyone health and wellness. 

The New York State Municipal Workers’ Compensation Alliance (Comp Alliance) is pleased to announce its will issue another Member Loyalty Award for its 2020-2021 fiscal year.

The Comp Alliance Board of Trustees recognizes the difficulties our members are going through in this unprecedented time. In appreciation of its members that have stood by the Comp Alliance and contributed to its continued success, the Comp Alliance will again distribute a portion of its surplus to members. This special monetary award reflects a recognition by the Board of Trustees of fiscal challenges faced by municipalities and provides a tangible benefit of municipal cooperation by returning funds to local governments and schools for the betterment of their communities.

All Comp Alliance members who agree to continue their membership with the Comp Alliance beyond February 1, 2021 are eligible for the Loyalty Award. Members will receive their award following the commencement of its new policy period. Award amounts are based on the individual member’s longevity of membership with the Comp Alliance and its annual funding contribution.

The Comp Alliance is a not-for-profit workers’ compensation group self-insurance program for municipalities and school districts, with a focus on improving workplace safety and providing stable funding for its members. When the Alliance was formed in the early 1990’s, municipalities in New York struggled to annually budget for unpredictable workers’ compensation costs. The Comp Alliance offers its members budgetary stability and the opportunity to achieve significant savings by sharing the costs of workers’ compensation insurance. Today, the Comp Alliance has over 300 members, $46 million in contributions and more than $39 million surplus to help maintain long-term financial stability.

With sponsorship and oversight by the Association of Towns of the State of New York and New York State Conference of Mayors, the Comp Alliance’s mission remains the same as it was 25 years ago —ensuring members are able to meet their long-term workers’ compensation liabilities while maintaining stable funding contributions.

For more information on the Member Loyalty Award Program, please contact a Comp Alliance Marketing Manager or your insurance broker. Visit the Comp Alliance at www.compalliance.org for more information, as well as on Twitter and Facebook for additional program enhancements and announcements.

Thank you for your support and stay well!

On May 4, 2020 the Comp Alliance hosted a webinar on the topic of Safety Culture for Administrators

While our state and nation are in the midst of this COVID-19 pandemic, now can still be a time to consider the risks facing your municipality and the controls for those risks. 

This webinar reviews the increased dangers facing our municipal workers which administrators should be aware of. Whether it’s working with diminished staff, decreased morale, negative attitudes, incomplete training, or workers just waiting to get back to a normal routine, many factors contribute to additional workplace injuries. 

Robert Blaisdell, Comp Alliance, Director of Risk Management discusses the current workers’ compensation risks and helpful controls for them.

Registered members can view the webinar by Clicking Here and signing in to the Comp Alliance Academy/Safety Webinars.

On Monday, April 13th, Governor Cuomo issued an Executive Order with new requirements for all essential businesses or entities.  Effective 8:00 p.m. on April 15, 2020, any employees who are present in the workplace shall be provided and shall wear face coverings when in direct contact with customers or members of the public.  This order applies to local governments, so to the extent that any Comp Alliance member has employees that have direct contact with the public, they will be required to provide face coverings. 

To assist our members in complying with this new requirement, the Comp Alliance has ordered a limited quantity of facemasks for its members.  Each member will receive a box of 50 initial facemasks during the week of April 20th.  While we recognize some of our members will have a greater need than these initial 50 masks, we may have additional quantities available as well, so please contact your Comp Alliance marketing or loss control rep for further details.

Please let us know if you have any questions, we wish you good health.