Quick Guide Our Workplace Safety and Insurance Board began as the Workmen's Compensation Board in 1915 through an Act of the Ontario Legislature. The legislature adopted the new system, based on recommendations by Sir William Meredith in 1914. No-fault collective liability Fundamental to the system was (and still is) an historic compromise in which workers give up the right to sue for their work-related injuries, irrespective of fault, in return for guaranteed compensation for accepted claims. Employers, for their part, receive protection from lawsuits in exchange for financing the program through premiums. This system of collective liability provides fair compensation for injured workers and their families, while spreading individual costs among employers. And, as in other insurance schemes, dangerous industries with more claims costs pay higher premium rates. Changes reflect economy and social order The workers' compensation system has undergone profound change over the 86 plus years since the beginning. For example in its first year, the WCB administered about 17,000 claims with a staff of 56 people located in Toronto. Today, we administer some 340,000 claims with a staff of approximately 4,500, located throughout Ontario to better serve workers and employers. We've had some name changes as well. From the Workmen's Compensation Board to the Workers' Compensation Board and now to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board. The name changes reflect the changing economic and social environment of the time. Workers' Compensation Board, for instance, recognized the increase of women in the workforce. Health and safety first The present name, WSIB, charts a new course. Before, the focus was on compensating those injured or ill, due to work-related causes. Today our mandate includes promoting the prevention of work-related injuries and illnesses. Through the changes introduced by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (1998), we now oversee Ontario's system of workplace safety education and training. We continue to administer the province's no-fault workplace insurance for employers and their workers. As part of this system, we provide disability benefits, monitor the quality of health care and assist in early, safe return to work for workers injured on the job or who contract an occupational disease. Employer-funded The WSIB is entirely financed by employer premiums. We receive no money from the Ontario provincial government. Health and Safety in Ontario For a timeline detailing health and safety in Ontario, see our Health and Safety Way Chronology.