Newsletter: September 2012

If your professional responsibilities include wearing the “workers’ compensation hat”, then you’re likely aware of the importance of your company’s Experience Modification Rate (EMR).  An EMR is a multiplier applied to an employer’s workers’ compensation premium based on that employer’s past claims history.  Simply put, it compares the claims “experience” of an employer to others that are both in the same industry and similar size.  Employers with fewer claims than their peers receive a credit EMR of less than 1.0 and receive a reduction in premium.  Those with less favorable experience or more claims than their peers are assigned a debit EMR of greater than 1.0 and receive an increase in their workers’ comp premium.  This is a vital piece of an employer’s insurance program, because its financial impact can be drastic.  In 2013, that effect is going to be magnified.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) is changing the way it calculates EMRs beginning January 1, 2013 (April 1, 2013 in Virginia).  The underlying reason for the change is the average workers’ comp claim has tripled in cost over the last twenty years.  This has effectively caused EMRs to become less responsive to individual employers’ claims histories.  Therefore the NCCI is making this change to more accurately reflect each employer’s individual loss/claims experience.  Generally speaking, the end result of this change will be a reduced multiplier and premium for employers currently with credit EMRs.  On the flip side, those currently with debit EMRs will see further increases and higher premiums.  The good news is employers will have greater control over their workers’ compensation insurance costs and will be rewarded for their efforts to reduce claims. 

The NCCI splits claims into two categories, primary and excess.  The first $5,000 of any claim is called the primary loss and represents incident frequency.  Anything over $5,000 is called the excess loss and represents claim severity.  All primary losses are used in the EMR calculation, but the excess losses are significantly reduced and have a lesser impact.  The system is designed to punish employers for having a higher than average frequency of claims.  In 2013, the “split point” at which a claim changes from primary to excess is increasing to $10,000, which means more claim dollars will be making it into the calculation and may result in higher EMRs.  In 2014, the “split point” will be increased to $13,500 and then the NCCI will continue making annual modifications to the EMR formula that will be indexed to cover increasing medical costs.  That being said, employers should put an emphasis on understanding exactly how this change will impact them.  There needs to be a proactive, knowledgeable approach to managing a workers’ compensation program, particularly the EMR.  A team strategy that includes the support of management, a true culture of safety, an effective return to work program, the services of an occupational health specialist, and the technical capability of a specialized insurance broker is a great place to begin.

We recommend working with an appropriately-certified occupational medical facility that specializes and understands how to manage your workers’ comp cases.  There are so many options that can be offered to help reduce claims costs and return workers back to work.  Cost-effective solutions in both medical care and prevention coupled with minimizing workplace injuries is certainly the goal in creating a healthy, safe and productive work environment.  Prevent and reduce the possibilities for injuries by implementing programs that include a pre-employment testing protocol for job types that have historical incidents or injuries that have resulted in lost days off as well as drug and alcohol testing.  Post-offer physical screening tests can determine the ability to perform essential job functions such as those that involve repetitive movement and heavy lifting.  Many companies are also implementing wellness plans to reduce risk factors such as obesity and chronic disease.  Wellness programs, which may include nutritional seminars, vaccinations and health screenings, can significantly lower absenteeism and the frequency and severity of claims.  All are contributing factors to lowering the cost of workers’ compensation.  The health and wellness of your business starts with the health and wellness of your workers.  Stay tuned for more on EMRs as we plan for our seminar on October 24.  For more information on how the EMR will affect your workers’ comp premiums call Ken Yavoich, CIC, CRIS, Vice President, Brown & Brown Flagship at 757- 628-3209.

Caroline Taylor is an RN and President of Taylor Made Diagnostics, a leader in providing occupational medical services in Hampton Roads.  TMD is located at the Gateway at SoNo, 801 Poindexter Street, Suite 218 in Chesapeake, Va. 23324, 757-494-1688, www.tmdoccmed.com.  Ms. Taylor is a 2011 Inside Business “Women in Business Achievement Award” honoree. 

            Virginia’s ship repair industry is heavily dependent on Government contract work, principally for the U.S. Navy. And lately, the future for local Navy contract work has looked anything but rosy. The combination of programmed defense budget cuts, a dwindling number of ships homeported in Hampton Roads, and the looming prospect of sequestration chopping another $50 billion from the Defense Department budget on January 2^nd has many in our industry battening down the hatches and preparing for some decidedly heavy fiscal weather.

Issues for Subcontractors Seminar—Speaker(s):  Kevin Cosgrove

October 17, 2012 Location: Troutman Sanders 222 Central Park Ave #2000, Virginia Beach

Most businesses performing government contract work are employed as subcontractors.  This seminar will cover issues specific to performing subcontract work on government contracts.  Some of the areas that will be covered are:

*Which Federal Regulations must be flowed down to subcontracts? *Which Federal Regulations may be flowed down?                  *What due diligence should be performed by subcontractors during the bidding process? *What notices of problems or other issues must subcontractors supply to their prime contractors? *How can subcontractors enforce their rights against prime contractors or the Government? *Dealing with indemnity issues. * Doing business with state and local government entities.

Alphabet Soup of Government Contracting FAPIIS or ORCA Seminar –Speaker(s): Michael Gardener & Jeffery Estes

November 8, 2012 Location: Troutman Sanders 222 Central Park Ave #2000, Virginia Beach

Mike Gardner and Jeff Estes will present a comprehensive overview of the legal and accounting issues government contractors must address in order to successfully comply with federal contracting regulations.  We will be addressing such topics as:

General update on FAR 31-Cost Principles - General update on CAS - DCAA hot button items (Incurred cost submissions, adequate accounting system audits) - General update on business systems rule and DCAA’s revised audit guidance - General update on SBA & DOL regulations which incorporates accounting data.

Thank you to our sponsors!

The September 18^th General Membership meeting will be held in conjunction with the Fleet Maintenance and Modernization Symposium 2012 at the VIRGINIA BEACH CONVENTION CENTER.  The CONFIRMED speaker is Admiral Jonathan Greenert, USN, Chief of Naval Operations.  The September 18^th meeting WILL NOT be held at the Renaissance Hotel.  Sean Stackley, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, is invited to speak Wednesday, September 19.

Theme:  Safety Begins with You! “Make it Personal”

VSRA hosts a Safety & Health seminar each year for the benefit of its members and employees.  This event is sponsored by the Safety Committee.  This is a dynamic day of presentations, activities and networking for employees who ensure their personal safety and those around them.

You may register online for the VSRA 17^th Annual Safety & Health Seminar scheduled for Wednesday, September 26, 2012.

Please click here for more information & to register.  Early Bird registration continues through September 14, 2012 - after that date fees go up.  Seating is limited, so reserve your seats today. 

This seminar provides both an opportunity for employees to earn professional training credit hours, as well as network with their peers in the region. The seminars are highly rated by attendees, and the content is developed by committee leaders from the industry, which strengthens the link between the subject matter covered and the needs of our member companies to have well-versed employees in the Safety arena.

Seminar Attendees will receive a Certificate of Participation. ABIH has previously awarded CM credit for this event.  The current event contains 8 Training hours which can be claimed for CM credit

If you are interested in sponsorship or have further questions about the seminar, please call Sylvia Bell at 757-233-7034, or e-mail, SBell@VirginiaShipRepair.org.  We expect this year’s event to be our best yet.  The exposure you will gain through sponsorship will be of great value to your company, in addition to the networking afforded by such a large audience.  Please click here to view details of the available sponsorship packages.   

26th Annual Golf Tournament

The event was a resounding success, and the weather was perfect for a day of comraderie on the links. 1st Place was won by General Dynamics NASSCO-Earl; 2nd Place was Capitol Finishes and 3rd Place went to Alliance Technical Services. Bill Moran and Rich Johnson took the Longest Drive prizes, and Closest to the Pin went to Mike Blessing, P. Cawley and John Workman. This year's event filled up in right under two weeks so mark June 2013 on your calendar for early registration! Thank you to all of the players and sponsors for your support of the Virginia Ship Repair Foundation.

All proceeds benefit the Virginia Ship Repair Foundation, an IRS 501(c)(3) Education Foundation, and donations are tax deductible. YOUR foundation focuses on the ship repair future workforce and incumbent training. This event is the organization’s principal way to raise funds for this important industry work.

Nomenclature:

Try it out today! Nomenclature is available NOW! Contact VSRA for a FREE trail code. All courses available in DVD format as well for classroom use. http://otraining.virginiashiprepair.org

The highly successful Safety Orientation on-line program led to members requesting more courses they can use to train workers in ship yard specific topics. As we listened and learned more, VSRA found that the value to members was in two areas: 1.) consistency of course content for the region and 2.) the flexibility of using that material in either a classroom or on-line format. As an initial step we are launching to entry-level courses in Nomenclature and Compartment Location that will be available this summer. We believe these will be not only valuable for new workers, but for students in technical schools that are looking to work in ship repair. As a follow on step, In order to determine where VSRA should place its resources and prioritizing efforts, the Safety Committee ran a survey to estimate demand and interest. The top choices were very consistently rated by the 78 responding companies: Hazard Communication, Overview of Confined Spaces Issues, WAF and Introduction to Standard Items. Although we don't have release dates for these new developments, any member company is welcome to join the content review committees.

Compartment Location:

An orientation to locating compartments and structures on a ship; this course is for anyone who will be working on a ship. It is not only important for locating working spaces, but for evacuation.

Topics:

• Review of Parts of a Vessel
• Review of Directions on a Ship
• How Naval Vessel Compartments are Named
• How Locations are Labeled
• Interpreting Compartment Labels
• Commercial Vessel Compartments

NAVSEA Basic Paint Inspector Certification Course & OSHA 10hr Maritime #7615

26th Annual Golf Tournament

The event was a resounding success, and the weather was perfect for a day of comraderie on the links. !st Place was won by General Dynamics NASSCO-Earl; 2nd Place was Capitol Finishes and 3rd Place went to Alliance Technical Services. Bill Moran and Rich Johnson took the Longest Drive prizes, and Closest to the Pin went to Mike Blessing, P. Cawley and John Workman. This year's event filled up in right under two weeks so mark June 2013 on your calendar for early registration! Thank you to all of the players and sponsors for your support of the Virginia Ship Repair Foundation.

Communications Committee

The Communications Committee did not meet in August. The committee invites anyone interested in participating to join them at the next meeting. The committee meets the Thursday following the General Membership Luncheon meeting at 9:00 a.m. at QED Systems, Inc. at 4646 N. Witchduck Rd, Virginia Beach, VA 23455. The next meeting will be on September 20, 2012.

Contracts Committee

The Contracts Committee met on August 2, 2012. The Contracts Committee is setting their schedule for the 2012 seminar series. The Schedule is as follows:

September 17th: Standards of Conduct which will be led by Pat O’Donnell and Bill Dozier

Sept 27th: Protests and Claims which will be led by Dan Weckstein and Terry Murphy

Oct 17th: Subcontractor issues and hot topics which will be led by Kevin Cosgrove

Nov 8th: Government Contracting Alphabet Soup – ORCA to FAPIIS which will be led by Jeff Estes and Mike Gardner.

The Contracts Committee meets the 1st Thursday of every month at the Norfolk offices of Troutman Sanders, Sixteenth Floor, 150 West Main Street, Norfolk, Virginia. The next committee meeting will be on September 6, 2012.

Environmental Committee

The Environmental Committee did not meet in August.  The committee meets the second Thursday of the odd numbered months at 10:00 a.m. in the United Coatings Corp. Training Room, 650 Chautauqua Avenue, Portsmouth, VA 23707. The next meeting will be on September 13, 2012.

Human Resources Committee

The Human Resources Committee met on August 1, 2012.  The Committee's Chairman, Chris Abel was the guest speaker speaking on “Dress and Grooming in the Workplace--the Legalities,"  addressing the current state of the law relating to dress and appearance in the workplace. The next regularly scheduled committee meeting will be at the Norfolk offices of Wilcox & Savage – 22nd Floor, 440 Monticello Avenue, Suite 2200, Norfolk, Virginia, at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, September 5,  2012.  The guest speaker will be Cher Wynkoop, an employment benefits attorney, who will talk about what the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) means for our member companies now that the Supreme Court has ruled it Constitutional.

Quality Assurance Committee

The Quality Assurance Committee met on August 14, 2012. The committee discussed the QA Audit Database and past due audits. They reviewed the QMB meeting agenda items. The SSRAC meeting was cancelled and the new plan is to have regional SSRAC meetings. The results of these meeting will be forwarded to a national SSRAC committee for final review.  CNRMC has provided a Relaxation letter for EPCP’s but it has not been invoked in our contracts.  CNRMC is developing a decision tree for CAR’s to try and standardize the severity level definitions (A, B, C and D).   NSSA is putting together a critically coated non-skid preservation team who will offset the maintenance team and oversee the entire critically coated non-skip process. The committee meets the 2^nd Tuesday of the month at 10:30 a.m. at Q.E.D. Systems, Inc., 4646 North Witchduck Road in Virginia Beach. The next regularly scheduled meeting will be on Tuesday, September 11, 2012.

Safety Committee

The Safety Committee met on Thursday, August 9, 2012. The Committee noted that in lieu of the cancelled SERRAC meeting there will be a mini-session for Standard Items inputs in Alexandria, VA. Contact Brian Applewhite for details. The 2012 17th Annual Safety & Health Seminar is scheduled for September 26, 2012 at the Ted Constant Convention Center at ODU. This year’s theme is “Safety Begins with You – Make it Personal.”  Online registration is in progress on the VSRA website.   Members are encouraged to register early to reserve their seating since there is a maximum attendance of "200" participants. Sponsors for the Safety & Health Seminar are still needed.  The committee meets the second Thursday of the month at 9:00 a.m. in the United Coatings Corp. Training Room, 650 Chautauqua Avenue, Portsmouth, VA 23707. The next meeting is on September 13, 2012.

Security Committee

The Security Committee met on August 14, 2012. The committee discussed “Brown Bag” participation and instructions were given for signing up.   The next three Brown Bag Topics (Red Dart, Searching the Annotated NISPOM, Mitigating FOCI) were presented.   There was a discussion of the Periodic Reinvestigations for Security Clearances reminding FSO’s that DISCO will no longer accept 180 day submission.  (Now 90 days).  The committee was informed that the ISFD will require hard token or CAC beginning 2013.  The committee was briefed that as of 8/1/12 a PIN is required to access RAPIDGATE information via phone. (PIN must be 8 digits all numeric).   All security conscious personnel are encouraged to report any suspicious activity surrounding their facility and to forward that information to DSS for follow-up and investigation.   Kerri Linkenhoker (NASSCO-Earl Industries) encouraged visiting the Virginia Beach Police Department website to view a video titled:  Seven Signs of Terrorism:  Become an Active Participant in Protecting the City. The committee meets the second Tuesday of the month at 10:00 a.m. in the United Coatings Corp. Training Room, 650 Chautauqua Avenue, Portsmouth, VA 23707. The next meeting is on September 11, 2012.

Worker’s Comp Committee

The Worker’s Comp Committee met on August 9, 2012.  The committee had a brief discussion of the application of the “coming and going” rule as to coverage for injuries under the Longshore Act.  In addition, they reviewed the passage of the change to the Virginia WC Act to do away with concurrent jurisdiction under both the LHWCA and State Acts for the same injury. The committee talked about the intention of some local attorneys to continue to pursue concurrent claims under the state Act until the matter had actually been tried before the State courts and upheld.  A reminder was given not to disregard a potential state claim simply based on the passage of the amendment to the State Act. The committee meets the second Thursday of the even numbered months at 10:00 a.m. in the United Coatings Corp. Training Room, 650 Chautauqua Avenue, Portsmouth, VA 23707. The next meeting is on October 11, 2012.

VSRF

The Virginia Ship Repair Foundation met on August 8, 2012. They are coordinating their stratgetic planning retreat for the end of September. Invitations for thre 2013 school year career days will be going out in September, with Lego competition applications released in October.