One workers’ comp plan sought for construction sites

Art Nadler

Thursday, April 29, 1999 | 12:47 p.m.

A bill requiring that different trade organizations at a construction site be placed under one "umbrella-like" workers compensation insurance package saw a little sunshine Wednesday.

Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, chairwoman of the Assembly Commerce and Labor Committee, said she planned to send Senate Bill 133 to a subcommittee to work out a compromise between differing sides.

The bill would require that private companies, public entities or utilities form a "consolidated insurance program" on construction jobs that would unify contractors and subcontractors under one policy.

Currently construction site workers are often under different workers compensation plans. Advocates of SB133 say that contributes to confusion and delays in injured employees being paid.

Scott Craigie, a lobbyist with Liberty Mutual Group, an insurance company, is touting SB133 as a way to ensure that workers are properly covered.

"There would be one insurance policy to cover all the workers compensation on a project," Craigie said. "There are some projects where there are 25 insurance policies."

Opponents to SB133, which included employers with self-insured plans, argued that some contractors' own plans might be cheaper than a consolidated policy. They wanted the option to run independent workers compensation programs.

Buckley said she hoped both sides would reach a compromise when the subcommittee is formed within the next few days.