Why Your Employees Don’t Report Workplace Injuries and How to Change That
More workers are choosing to delay reporting workplace injuries to their employer or not reporting injuries at all. In recent conversations with prospective clients, this seems to be a growing trend. Regardless of the industry or province you’re working in, companies are seeing a rise in workers trying to hide their WCB claims from their employers.
TL;DR: Many employees fail to report workplace injuries or WCB-related incidents to their employers — not due to negligence, but because of mistrust, fear of retaliation, lack of awareness, or cultural pressures within the workplace. This article emphasizes that underreporting is a leadership issue, not an employee one, and employers must build a culture of trust, education, and accountability to ensure proper claim reporting. A proactive response includes training managers to foster open communication and safety, which ultimately reduces claim costs and legal risk.
A recent conversation with a health and safety manager, revealed the growing frustration and panic trying to get his employees to report workplace accidents/incidents when they happen.
Why Workers Don’t Report Workplace Injuries and What You Can Do About It
Workers can choose not to report workplace injuries for many reasons. I find it easier to boil it down to a single point.
If an employee trusted you, the company, or even the system, they would be more comfortable coming to you for help.
Some companies will say it’s a fear of the worker losing their job. Absolutely, but my challenge is this is a symptom of a bigger problem. A lack of trust.
Maybe the worker “didn’t think it would be a big deal.”
Perhaps…or maybe they thought YOU would make a big deal out if it and they didn’t want to be THAT person.
In many cases the employee simply had no clue what they were supposed to do because nobody took the time to explain it to them.
The fact is, more workers are choosing not to report workplace injuries because they don’t trust you and feel like no one has their back.
Why Timely Injury Reporting Matters for WCB Costs and Compliance
The quick answer is because it ensures your people are being taken care of in the most cost effective way for you. You’re preventing what is often a small issue from becoming a bigger issue down the road.
When I work with a company I’m always looking for symptoms to a problem. I know I said earlier that a company isn’t trusted and that’s why your employees aren’t reporting things, but again, if we think about it…trust is also a symptom.
If your employees are hiding their injuries from you it’s only a matter of time before something major happens and it starts costing you a lot of money. Not to mention the headaches trying to find out what happened and the energy to get the situation under control.
You also become an easy target for fraudulent claims.
The reason your workers are reporting injuries late or not at all is because you don’t have a system in place that is communicated to your staff on how you’re going to act when a WCB claim happens in the company.
How to Stop Workers from Hiding Workplace Injuries
To prevent workers from hiding claims, we’ve found the solution is in making sure you have a program that tells employees how you’re going to take care of them if they’re injured.
A good WCB program in your company includes:
A response plan when a worker reports symptoms
Reporting procedure that makes it easy for the worker to tell someone they’ve been injured at work
Tools and resources to make sure the worker’s story is captured properly and they’re getting the help they need.
Frontline management that’s trained to respond to incidents and guide the worker through the process
Remember that your employees are always watching you. They’re looking to see how you handle these kinds of situations. If they see that you’re firing people that make WCB claims…they won’t trust you. Because while you’re saying you care about your employees, your actions show something different.
You also need to make sure your supervisors and front line staff are educated in how to respond to an incident AND be able to communicate the process to the worker.
For most employees this is their first injury. If you haven’t told them what to do, they’re often going to think they should / could deal with this on their own. Workers will go see their doctors to get help, not realizing that in doing so they’re triggering a WCB claim.
A Workers Compensation Board (WCB) claim is created when:
A worker reports the injury
An employer reports an injury
A physician send a report to WCB
If a worker is hiding the fact they’re hurt from you, you will often find out by getting a letter or phone call from WCB. They’ll be telling you they were notified of an incident involving one of your workers and that you need to submit reports so they can decide if they’ll accept the claim.
This leads to widespread panic and conversations that feel more like interrogations that conversations.
This all only reinforces to your employees you’re only interested in what matters to you which isn’t them.
When you have a solid program that has been clearly explained to your workforce, you’ll notice employee reporting accidents in a timely manner. In addition, co-workers will encourage injured workers to report their injuries so they can get better faster and prevent further injury.
Your health and safety team can be a major driver of this culture shift if trained properly.
Does Reporting WCB Claims Increase Premiums? Here’s the Truth
The majority of WCB pricing programs are based on the cost of a claim. This is important to understand because instead of focusing on the number of claims being reported, you should be worried about how much it’s costing you.
In many situations, knowing that a worker has symptoms right away can prevent a WCB claim. This is because in most provinces a WCB claim is only reported if the worker receives treatment greater than first aid OR hasn’t required a change in their job.
In our experience, our clients have seen a decrease in claims costs because the system is designed to look after their employees. When someone is reporting an incident, they’re being taken care of right away. This is reducing the cost of the claim which is reducing WCB premiums. The worker gets better faster and the company is saving money.
It’s the old saying. I’d rather deal with the devil I know then the devil I don’t. This is because if I know the problem I’m facing I can manage it. If I don’t know…how can I resolve it.
How to Prevent Fraudulent WCB Claims Before They Start
Many companies think they more procedures and rules the less claims they’ll have. This is incorrect. The way to prevent fraudulent WCB claims is by having a solid WCB program and employees trained in how to use them.
Think about it in a different way.
If someone wanted to break into your car. Would they prefer a car that has no alarm in a dark corner with the windows down and doors unlocked?
OR
Would they prefer a car parked in your locked garage with security system and the car has an alarm with the windows up and the doors locked?
I suppose they could try the second, but the prefer the first scenario.
The same is true with WCB claims. Someone who is looking to make a fraudulent claim against you is looking for a company that has no program, doesn’t monitor or questions employees about their behavior, has no paperwork to complete, and management that doesn’t have the first clue how to manage a WCB claim.
That’s easy money!
Preventative systems need to match the right process to the right phase of injury response.
How to Train Your Team to Handle Workplace Injuries the Right Way
The companies who win at WCB aren’t the ones with fewer injuries — they’re the ones who know exactly what to do when one happens.
If you’re still trying to “wing it” every time someone gets hurt, you’re playing Russian roulette with your profits. Stop making your team guess how they’re supposed to report, react, or respond. Give them clarity. Give them confidence. And give yourself some damn peace of mind.
That’s why I put together a free guide called “How to Train Your Team to Respond to a WCB Incident.” It’s short, practical, and shows you what needs to be in place to stop claim chaos before it starts.
And if you’re tired of chasing fires and want someone in your corner who actually knows how this stuff works — I’m your guy. I help companies like yours build bulletproof WCB programs, train their teams, and cut through the noise so you don’t get blindsided by hidden claims, rising premiums, or bad advice.
If you’re unsure where to start or want expert help reviewing your existing process, we also offer direct support through WCB Consulting.
Let’s talk about getting your program fixed…before it costs you more than it already has.
