TORONTO — The Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has increased workers’ compensation premiums by 2 percent for 2012.

While this is nowhere near the 11.1 percent increase of 2011, Ontario Trucking Associations’ (OTA) president, David Bradley, said that "any increase in these economic times is unwelcome and while a 2 percent increase is better than the double-digit increase of last year, it is not clear what the long-term performance or burden of the WSIB will be."

The OTA, along with other employer groups, have leaning on the WSIB to do a better job of cost control, "as opposed to jacking up payroll taxes on employers," they said in a statement.

Last year, OTA said that the "deal" between employers and the Government of Ontario that led to the establishment of the provincial workers’ compensation program a century ago was no longer working or valid. Private options needed to be considered, they said.

In 2012, the General Trucking (rate group 570) rate will increase from $6.43 to $6.56, the Courier Services (rate group 577) rate will increase from $2.89 to $2.95 and the Warehousing (rate group 560) rate will increase from $3.28 to $3.35.