Alec Caldwell
Why doesn’t WSIB (Ontario) have a Facebook page?
Canadian ContractorWell, it's not hard to imagine what kind of posts would be popping up there, if the well-heeled bureaucrats at Ontario's worker insurance monopoly decided to actually take itself public for comment.
Well, why don’t they?
Even the Ontario Ministry of Labour (MOL) has a Facebook page, with over 5,000 “likes” (visit page) and their page allows the MOL to date visitors on its news.
So why doesn’t the WSIB (Workplace Safety and Insurance Board) have a Facebook page? After all they’re already using other media like LinkedIn.
Could it be that individuals might post their claims stories or other issues that WSIB probably doesn’t enjoy seeing publicized very much. And all those thumbs down that a WSIB Facebook page would undoubtedly earn…
Meanwhile, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) released a report in November, alleging that WSIB has been ignoring the recommendations of doctors. Another group, the Family of Injured, Disabled and Workers, has been giving the thumbs down to WSIB, too.
There is a volcano of BS and garbage available online, as we all know, but there are many real stories, from real people, with real claims against the WSIB, that would undoubtedly overwhelm a WSIB Facebook page.
Let us know what you think…
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According to my figures, if I was to get stuck in the WSIB’s system as a contractor I would be paying about $6000 a year for the rest of my career. Currently, I do whatever it takes to stay exempt… in a legal manner. Most of my renovation work is directly for the homeowner, therefore my little one-man company is exempt from paying WSIB premiums or having a registration number. I’ve spoken to their agents a few times about “the rules”. Their program really limits my business but, of course, they do not care about that. Whenever a contractor wants to hire me for a residential job I have to inform them that I can only deal directly with the homeowner financially. Commercial work I have to decline altogether although one company that wanted to use my services put me on their payroll and I would work as an employee for a few months. I suppose this is the only way to stay “exempt”. In order to protect my customers in case of an injury I have a real disability policy that covers me 24 hrs a day whether at work or not and it costs me one quarter of what the WSIB would. Instead of forcing a contractor to pay into WSIB, the government should have developed a law where all contractors are required to have a certain type of insurance plan and listed an assortment of businesses that could provide such a policy. It would be fair and honest in a business sense which is what Canada is all about; not a corrupt and unreasonable “system” as what we are subjected to now.