Golf. Hearts. Sprint races. What do these classic competitions have in common with your company’s experience modification rate? The lowest score wins. 

We’re not saying you should play games when it comes to workplace safety. That’s serious business. But using risk management software to lower the EMR score of your construction business gives you a competitive advantage. It streamlines safety operations, saves your construction company money, and enhances your reputation with clients and employees. 

What Is an EMR Score?

First things first. Before you can lower your EMR score, it's important to understand the EMR score meaning and origin, as well as how it’s calculated.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance created the formula to calculate the experience modification rate — more commonly referred to as the EMR score — to predict the likelihood of a particular company filing a workers compensation claim. 

Insurers use this formula to determine a company’s premium. Factors that play into the employer portion of this ratio include:

• Size of payroll
• Number of reported safety incidents
• Severity of incidents
• Cost of insurance claims

A natural assumption is that a company with several minor incidents on its record would have a better EMR score than a company with one major claim. A higher number of reported incidents, however, actually predicts more problems in the future and makes the EMR higher as well.

So what is a good EMR score in the construction industry? 

• Good ≅ .75
• Average = 1
• Below Average ≅ 1.25
• Bad ≅ 1.5

And how does it determine what your company pays for its workers comp policy? The EMR score is multiplied by the base premium.

A company with an EMR of 1.25, for example, can expect to pay $125,000 for a policy with a $100,000 base premium. By comparison, a company with a good score would only pay $75,000 for the same coverage. Your company’s EMR score significantly impacts its bottom line.

Technology Makes It Easy to Play By The Rules and Reduce Losses

With risk management software, you can stop wondering how to improve your EMR score and start doing it. SafetyReports easily integrates with existing workflows to enhance jobsite safety. It helps you identify potential hazards and prevent injuries, which lowers your score. Safety Reports has a full range of features that enable you to: 

• Prioritize, conduct, and document safety training  
• Comply with OSHA standards
• Empower your crew and encourage communication
• Scan and inspect safety equipment

The amount of money you save on workers compensation premiums and potential OSHA fines by using Safety Reports more than pays for the cost of the software. Improving your company’s EMR score and other safety metrics also helps you attract and retain employees. Plus, it gives you a competitive advantage when bidding jobs. Potential clients know that working with a crew with a strong safety culture keeps projects on-time and on-budget. Win-win.

Schedule a free demo of Safety Reports and learn more about other operational tools from AlighOps to scale and grow your construction business.