HALIFAX, NS – Accountability breeds change.

That’s the focus of a new business model at WCB Nova Scotia that’s aimed at better protecting the workforce Nova Scotia so badly needs to be healthy, working, and on the job.

“The whole adage is that you can’t keep doing things the same way and expect to see different results,” says WCB CEO Karen Adams. “We have more people working in the province than ever before and we have an obligation to make sure that they stay healthy and safe at work.”

She says that for too long, WCB was actually the bottleneck.

Now, WCB is on a clear path to change — to be the solution, not the problem.

The government review of the workers’ compensation system released last year identified a WCB that wasn’t living up to its potential.

The system as a whole, for a number of reasons, created an unfortunate outcome: Too many workers lose too much time from injury. Instead of being supported by the WCB, their employer, and service providers to return to safe, healthy work, too many Nova Scotians go on to long-term benefits – far more than in other provinces.

The report also identified a claims process that was too complex and too slow, and return-to-work outcomes that were among the worst in the country.

“The review reiterated what we already knew: The workers and employers of this province need more from us,” says Adams. “That’s why we’ve acted.”

That action includes:

  • Keeping prevention as job one, continuing the decline in the province’s injury rate
  • Holding WCB itself more accountable, through service level agreements and more visible, regular reporting on standards on everything from how quickly phone calls are returned to how quickly claim decisions are issued.
  • Holding employers accountable, who may face fines if they don’t cooperate in return to work, including finding suitable work for people injured on the job.
  • Holding workers accountable, who also have to do their part in the return-to-work process.
  • Holding service providers accountable, curbing over-treatment of sprain and strain injuries and ensuring effective return-to-work support.

The path to improvement is simple, Adams says. It’s better if injuries don’t happen at all but when they do, WCB has to be there in a way it never has before. With better outcomes based in stricter accountability, WCB becomes more financially stable, and less expensive.

That allows the WCB to improve employer rates, and government to improve worker benefits, in tandem: A balanced approach that realizes the benefits of a more efficient system.

As the province grows, so does its workforce. And WCB’s work becomes even more important to keep Nova Scotians working.

“We all want the same thing – we want Nova Scotians working,” says Adams. “Accountability, for all of us, is how we will accomplish that.”

Additional Quotes:

“Nova Scotians have made it clear that the system must be simplified and that there must be greater accountability. By addressing these challenges, we can better support injured workers, reduce costs, and drive economic growth. This is the progress Nova Scotians expect, and we are committed to delivering it.”

-Nolan Young, Minister of Labour, Skills and Immigration

Additional Resources:

WCB's Response to the 2024 System Review

WCB's Protect More Strategic Plan