A reduction in workplace fatalities and injuries has prompted a major reduction in the cost of workers compensation insurance for employers in Arkansas, Governor Hutchinson announced today at noon at the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The state’s incidence of workplace fatalities is at an all-time low, the governor said, falling from 106 in 1995 to 49 in 2017. Workplace injuries are down as well, he added.

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“And we have to put that in perspective … we have more people working today than ever before,” he said. “Our workplace is becoming more safe.”

As a result, Hutchinson said, the cost of workers comp insurance is being reduced by 15.4 percent, effective immediately. Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Alan Kerr signed off on the change in rates today.

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“This is the largest reduction in workers compensation insurance in over 20 years,” Hutchinson said. The reduced rate was recommended by the National Council of Compensation Insurance, he said.

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