Montana workers’ compensation fund pays largest dividend

HELENA – Many Montana businesses will share a $20 million windfall from the state workers’ compensation fund.

The Montana State Fund’s board on Friday approved its largest dividend ever for most of its 27,000 business customers in the state.

The dividend equates to an average 16 percent reduction of workers’ compensation insurance premiums paid by businesses in 2012, fund officials said.

The amount of dividend a company receives will be based on how much premium it pays and its worker safety record. About 95 percent of the businesses insured by the State Fund will get a dividend, fund officials said.

“This is the best way that we can award employers who are doing a good job,” board member Joe Brenneman told Lee Newspapers of Montana.

By law, all employers in Montana must carry workers’ compensation coverage.