Sandra Stoddard

Union Construction Workers'​ Compensation Program

OUR BEGINNING After decades of rising costs and battles between labor and employers in state legislatures and courts, Minnesota passed legislation in 1995 allowing for an alternative workers' compensation system developed through collective bargaining. In 1996, Wilson-McShane Corporation was hired by a labor-management coalition to develop and administer the Union Construction Workers' Compensation Program (UCWCP). OUR METHODS UCWCP contractors and their union employees are able to forgo the complex and frustrating state-run system. By requiring the contractor, insurer and injured employee to use pre-approved service providers (treating doctors, vocational counselors, neutral physician examiners, mediators and arbitrators) the focus is kept on recovery and return to the trade whenever possible. OUR MISSION ELIMINATE the adversarial culture of workers'​ compensation claim administration; PROVIDE a resource for ‘best in class' medical and rehabilitation providers using the most effective treatment protocols; ENSURE payment of appropriate medical and wage loss benefits without delay; CREATE a prompt and safe return to union work, wages and benefits to minimize financial losses to injured employees, contractors and insurance providers; REDUCE the costs of workers' compensation insurance for union contractors, thereby increasing their competitiveness.