In short:
The Tasmanian government pays millions of dollars each year in state employee workers' compensation claims.
uncertain
government → pay → claims
The state's WorkCover Board is currently reviewing the scheme.
asserted
Board → review → scheme
The Labor opposition is concerned the review will make it significantly harder for workers to claim long-term compensation, including for psychological injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.
uncertain
workers → concern → injuries
The amount the Tasmanian government has paid for workers' compensation claims has more than tripled over the past decade.
uncertain
government → pay → decade
According to the Tasmanian Risk Management Fund's annual reports, the amount the government paid in workers' compensation rose from $32.7 million to $143.4 million between the 2015 and 2024 financial years.
Meanwhile, the government has flagged 1,700 job cuts across the state service.
uncertain
government → accord → service
Tasmania's workers' compensation scheme covers people who have suffered a physical or psychosocial injury, or a disease in the course of their employment, or when their work has substantially contributed to such harm.
asserted
work → cover → harm
Independent body WorkCover Board Tasmania is currently reviewing the scheme to ensure it is fair and financially sustainable.
asserted
it → review → scheme
"The review comes at a time of increasing complexity across workers' compensation systems nationally, including growth in psychological injury claims, increasing claim duration and complexity, and evolving workforce structures," its media release said.
uncertain
release → come → duration
Consultation on the changes closes in September.
asserted
Consultation → close → September
Better prevention, support needed
The review has raised concerns for some.
asserted
review → need → some
In state parliament on Wednesday, Labor leader Josh Willie asked the treasurer what changes were being considered.
asserted
changes → ask → treasurer
"Will you guarantee that no injured Tasmanian worker will recover a lower payment, lose coverage, or face a higher barrier to make a claim as a result of your review?" he asked.
uncertain
he → guarantee → review
Treasurer Eric Abetz sought to ease concern, pointing to other states that were reviewing rules around workers' compensation.
asserted
that → seek → compensation
"Why would you look to lock in a position before you get a full report, and you've got the information before you to make a genuine considered decision?" Mr Abetz asked.
asserted
Abetz → look → decision
"What we want to do is get the best possible protection of our workers while the system is sustainable.
asserted
system → want → workers
"
Unions Tasmania secretary Jessica Munday said any change that reduced compensation could be detrimental.
uncertain
that → say → compensation
She said prioritising preventative measures was more important.
"Resourcing workers, supporting workers, preventing bullying and harassment ...
asserted
prioritising → say → bullying
If we invest in those things, we will go a long way towards lowering the cost of workers' compensation,"she said.
asserted
we → invest → workers
Reduced cover not ruled out
Mr Abetz said psychosocial injury claims had doubled over the past decade, and amounted to eight times the cost of a physical injury claim.
uncertain
claims → rule → claim
In 2019, workers' compensation laws were amended in Tasmania so that the cause of the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) would be automatically presumed to be work-related for the purposes of a compensation claim.
uncertain
cause → amend → claim
Health Minister Bridget Archer would not rule out the government reducing, narrowing or removing the presumptive cover offered to first responders.
asserted
government → rule → responders
A report by KPMG stated that in the 2024–2025 financial year, 28 per cent of Tasmania's state service claims were mental-health related, and 15 per cent of those were PTSD claims.
uncertain
cent → state → those
It found that frontline workers — including police, firefighters and paramedics — accounted for up to 23 per cent of mental health claims, and that over the past five years the figure appeared to be growing.
uncertain
figure → find → years
The parliament also heard that a specialist wellbeing unit for Department of Justice staff was to be abolished, with the opposition claiming 200 workers would be affected.
asserted
workers → hear → staff
Justice Minister Guy Barnett said the change would occur later this year, following a review of wellbeing services.
asserted
change → say → services
Ms Munday criticised this approach.
asserted
Munday → criticise → approach
"That to me sounds like a government that wants to tick off numbers on a budget paper and say 'we have got less staff here', but your costs are going to come out somewhere else," she said.
asserted
she → sound → staff
"What we worry about is that the cost is going to come out in more injuries, not less."
'Bracing' for 'significant increases'
Hobart-based barrister Luke Taylor, who has represented employees and employers in the workers' compensation process, said the Tasmanian government self-insured its workers' compensation risk through its Tasmanian Risk Management Fund (TRMF).
"Each year, the money that each agency [department] is paid out of that fund to meet its workers' compensation exposure is then calculated to produce a premium that department will then pay into the TRMF for the following year," Mr Taylor said.
asserted
Taylor → worry → year
Earlier this year, the ABC reported that more than 100 police officers at the time were off work on mental health claims.
uncertain
officers → report → claims
During Senate estimates, it was revealed that insurance premiums to the TRMF from the DPFEM had risen from $2 million in 2018 to $63 million this year.
asserted
premiums → reveal → million
"We have done some work around where we think the premium is going to head and we are bracing ourselves for significant increases in [future] years," Police Commissioner Donna Adams said at the time.
asserted
Adams → do → time
Mr Taylor said several significant changes to benefits for DPFEM workers had been made in recent years, which included the presumption of PTSD.
asserted
which → say → PTSD
"The statutory step-downs in their weekly payment rates have been done away with for police who suffered their injury in the course of frontline policing,"he said.
asserted
who → do → policing,"he
The Aporia