The Business Council's workers' compensation trust for manufacturers enjoyed explosive growth throughout 2000 and entered 2001 with $10 million in annual premiums.

"Our workers' comp trust offers manufacturing members excellent comp coverage at competitive rates, and more and more Council members are signing up for the savings," said Bob Crandall, The Council's director of member services.

The Council's workers' comp trust has enjoyed favorable loss experience since its creation in 1996. This has allowed the trust to maintain competitive rates and, as a result, participation in the trust has skyrocketed.

In January of 1999, the trust had 11 members and billed $448,550 in premium. The next January, 157 members were billed $3.1 million in premiums. As of March 5, 2001, 375 members were being billed $10.2 million in annual premiums.

All New York employers must buy workers' comp coverage for workers. Commercial insurers and the state Insurance Fund offer fully insured plans using the state's manual rates.

The Business Council's trust is a self-funded plan; as a result, it can offer manufacturers both lower initial yearly rates and the potential of future dividends.

For example, last April, as a result of favorable loss experience from the trust's beginnings in 1996, the trust offered its first dividend. Manufacturers that were trust members in 1998 received dividends worth 26.5 percent of premiums they paid during that year.

Crandall urged The Council's manufacturing members that are not already in the trust to consider joining to gain possible reductions in workers' comp costs.

"All manufacturing members should look into it, because the savings could be substantial," he said.

The trust is administered by First Cardinal Corporation, which administers 12 such trusts and is New York's largest trust administrator.

For more information on The Business Council's workers' comp trust for manufacturers click here.

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