The Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba (WCB) is an

agency Agency may refer to: Organizations * Institution, governmental or others ** Advertising agency or marketing agency, a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients ** Employment agency, a business that ...

of the Government of Manitoba that provides a system for

workplace injury Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wor ...

and

disability insurance Disability Insurance, often called DI or disability income insurance, or income protection, is a form of insurance that insures the beneficiary's earned income against the risk that a disability creates a barrier for completion of core work func ...

for workers and employers of Manitoba, paid for by employers. Established in 1917 in accordance with ''The Workers Compensation Act'',''The Workers Compensation Act'', C.C.S.M. c. W200
– via ''Manitoba Laws''. which was passed the previous year, WCB's creation was the result of a compromise: injured workers gave up the right to sue employers in exchange for no-fault insurance in the case of work-related injuries or illness, while employers agreed to pay for the system providing they would be protected from lawsuits. One of the problems that workers' compensation was created to solve, namely, the problem of employers becoming insolvent as a result of high damage awards. The system of collective liability was created to prevent that, and thus to ensure security of compensation to the workers. Individual immunity is the necessary corollary to collective liability. WCB is run by a board of directors that consists of 10 members appointed by the Manitoba government from nominations submitted by labour, employers and the public. The chief executive officer (CEO) is a non-voting member of the board of directors. , the current chairperson of the board of directors is Michael D. Werier, and the current president and CEO is Richard Deacon. As of 2019, the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba has reported to Manitoba's Minister of Finance. WCB's organizational

ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

is the Fair Practices Office. SAFE Work Manitoba, a division of the Workers Compensation Board, is a

public agency In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

focused on the prevention of workplace injury and illness.

''The Workers Compensation Act''

''The Workers Compensation Act'' was passed in 1916, establishing the Workers Compensation Board the following year. Assessments under the act are levied upon employers and gathered into a common fund out of which benefits are paid to workers who are injured as a result of their employment. Administration and adjudication are carried out by the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba.

Minister responsible for ''The Workers Compensation Act''

Since 1981, the Executive Council of Manitoba has included a Minister responsible for ''The Workers Compensation Act''; however the specific ministerial designation has changed several times over the years, and the current position is not a full cabinet portfolio but rather is held by a minister with other cabinet responsibilities. For instance, most ministers responsible for the ''Workers Compensation Act'' have also been Ministers of Labour, though not necessarily. As of 2019, the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba has reported to Manitoba's Minister of Finance. The position was first held by

Jay Cowan Jay Marine Cowan (July 31, 1946 – January 23, 2022) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1977 to 1990, and a cabinet minister in the government of Howard Pawley from 1981 to 1988 ...

, who, in addition to overseeing other portfolios in cabinet, was designated as Minister responsible for the Workers Compensation Act and Minister responsible for ''The Workplace Safety and Health Act''. In 1983, both positions were incorporated into the new cabinet portfolio of Workplace Safety and Health, the first minister for which was

Gerard Lecuyer Gerard Lecuyer (born August 2, 1936 in Saint Boniface, Manitoba) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988, and a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party government of Ho ...

, who was also Minister of Environment. In 1991, the Workplace Safety and Health portfolio was eliminated.

List of Ministers

{, class="wikitable" !Name !Party !Title(s) !Took Office !Left Office !Concurrent roles , - ,

, rowspan="3" , NDP , * Minister responsible for administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' * Minister responsible for administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , November 30, 1981 , November 4, 1983 , *

Minister of Northern Affairs The minister of northern affairs (french: ministre des Affaires du Nord) is a minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet. The position has been held by Dan Vandal since 20 November 2019. In 1953, the role of Minister of Northern Affairs and N ...

* Minister responsible for Environmental Management; administration of Clean Environment Act, The Communities Economic Development Fund Act , - ,

, Minister of Environment and Workplace and Health , November 4, 1983 , May 9, 1988 , , - ,

Harry Harapiak Harry Myrislaw Harapiak (September 17, 1938 - November 14, 2000) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1981 to 1990, and was a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party govern ...

Minister of Government Services Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

& Workers Compensation Board , February 4, 1987 , May 9, 1988 , , - , Edward Connery , rowspan="5" , PC , * Minister of Environment, Workplace Safety and Health * Minister responsible for ''Workers Compensation Act'' , May 9, 1988 , February 5, 1991 , * Minister of Labour * Minister responsible for Civil Service Act, Civil Service Superannuation Act and Public Servants Insurance Act , - ,

Darren Praznik Darren Thomas Praznik (born May 9, 1961) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a cabinet minister in the Progressive Conservative government of Gary Filmon, and considered running for the party's leadership in 2000. Praznik was born in S ...

, Minister responsible for ''Workers Compensation Act'' , February 5, 1991 , May 9, 1995 , * Minister of Labour (1990-1995) * Minister responsible for Civil Service Act, Civil Service Superannuation Act, Civil Service Special Supplementary Severance Benefit Act, Public Servants Insurance Act (1990–1995) * Minister responsible for French Language Services (1991-1995) , - , Vic Toews , Minister responsible for the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , May 9, 1995 , January 6, 1997 , * Minister of Labour * Minister responsible for Civil Service Act, Civil Service Superannuation Act, Civil Service Special Superannuation Service Benefit Act, and Public Servants Insurance Act , - , Harold Gilleshammer , Minister charged with the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , January 6, 1997 , February 5, 1999 , * Minister of Labour * Minister charged with the administration of the Civil Service Act, The Civil Service Superannuation Act, The Civil Service Special Supplementary Severance Benefit Act (1983), The Public Servants Insurance Act , - , Mike Radcliffe , Minister responsible for the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , February 5, 1999 , October 5, 1999 , * Minister of Labour * Minister charged with the administration of the Civil Service Act, The Civil Service Superannuation Act, The Civil Service Special Supplementary Severance Benefit Act (1983), The Public Servants Insurance Act , - , Becky Barrett , rowspan="6" , NDP , Minister responsible for the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , October 5, 1999 , June 25, 2003 , * Minister of Labour * Minister responsible for the administration of The Civil Service Act, The Civil Service Superannuation Act, The Civil Service Special Supplementary Severance Benefits Act (1983), The Public Servants Insurance Act , - ,

Steve Ashton ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

, Minister charged with the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , June 25, 2003 , November 4, 2003 , * Minister of Labour and Immigration * Minister responsible for Multiculturalism , - , Nancy Allan , Minister charged with the administration of ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , November 4, 2003 , November 3, 2009 , * Minister of Labour and Immigration * Minister responsible for Multiculturalism * Minister responsible for the Status of Women , - , rowspan="2" , Jennifer Howard , rowspan="2" , Minister responsible for ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , November 3, 2009 , January 13, 2012 , * Minister of Labour and Immigration * Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities * Minister responsible for the Status of Women , - , January 13, 2012 , October 18, 2013 , * Minister of Family Services and Labour * Minister responsible for Persons with Disabilities * Minister responsible for the Status of Women * Government House Leader , - ,

Erna Braun Erna Braun is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislatu ...

, Minister responsible for ''The Workers Compensation Act'' , October 18, 2013 , May 3, 2016 , * Minister of Labour and Immigration , - , Cliff Cullen , rowspan="4" , PC , rowspan="4" , N/A , May 3, 2016 , August 17, 2017 , * Minister of Growth, Enterprise and Trade , - ,

Blaine Pedersen Blaine Pedersen is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba in the 2007 provincial election for the electoral division of Carman. Pederson is a member of the Progressive Conservative Party. Pede ...

{{Cite web, url=https://www.wcb.mb.ca/annual-report-2017, title = Annual Report 2017 | Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba , August 17, 2017 , October 23, 2019 , * Minister of Growth, Enterprise and Trade , - , Scott Fielding , August 1, 2018 , January 18, 2022 , * Minister of Finance , - ,

Cameron Friesen Cameron Scott Friesen, MLA is a Canadian politician and member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba for Morden-Winkler, currently serving as the Manitoba Minister of Finance. A member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba, he wa ...

, January 18, 2022 , ''incumbent'' , *Minister of Finance

References

External links

Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba
Manitoba government departments and agencies Workers' compensation