Fla. Town Hall Meetings Scheduled to Update Employers, Employees About Workers’ Comp

A series of town hall workshops will be held this month in Orlando, Tampa and Ft. Myers, Fla. to give employers and employees updated information on the state’s workers’ compensation system and to answer questions about recent rate reductions. The workshops are being sponsored jointly by the Division of Workers’ Compensation and the Department of Financial Services.

Workshops will be held in Ft. Myers Dec. 13, in Tampa Dec. 14 and in Orlando Dec. 15. All of the sessions will take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“Meaningful reforms, more aggressive investigation of workers’ compensation fraud and compliance efforts have led to dramatic savings for Florida’s businesses,” commented Tom Gallagher DFS CFO. “But we must continue to improve the system for our small businesses and our workers.”

Gallagher spearheaded the passage of Senate Bill 50A in 2003 that reformed the state’s workers’ compensation system, including tougher penalties for workers’ compensation fraud and premium evasion. This year’s decrease in workers’ compensation insurance rates will be the third consecutive drop in rates since the bill’s passage, for a total savings of nearly $1 billion since 2003.

The workshops will be held on: Tuesday, Dec. 13 in Ft. Myers at Florida Gulf Coast University, Student Union Ballroom, 10501 FGCU Boulevard South, Ft. Myers; Wednesday, December 14, Embassy Suites, USF/Busch Gardens, 3705 Spectrum Boulevard, Tampa; and Thursday, Dec. 15, City of Orlando, City Hall Council Chamber Room, 2nd floor, 400 S. Orange Avenue, Orlando.