As record-setting heat waves stretch across the US and the globe, it is impossible to ignore the impact on millions of workers. Many at risk of heat injury work in professions that already present higher hazards—such as agribusiness and construction. Not only can high...
Trends
California weather crisis illustrates importance of arborists
The deadly California storms and subsequent flooding have brought to light the importance of arborists—not just during times of emergency, but year-round. The West Coast storms, which have claimed the lives of 19 people at the time of this writing, have swept away...
Foresight’s year-end achievements broaden horizons for 2023
2022 achievements broaden Foresight’s horizons for 2023 in exciting ways By David Fontain, CEO, and Co-Founder Foresight Insurance In creating Foresight, my co-founder Peter Grant and I set out with a fundamental belief that high-risk workplaces can be made safer and...
Why Insuretech is a Safer Bet
Why is Insuretech the safer bet? To start, the insurance and reinsurance industry is undergoing significant change. Driven by technology, insurers and policyholders will experience the revolution first-hand over the next several years. Now is the time to get on...
Four Cities Where Manufacturing is Booming
U.S. manufacturing has been in decline for several decades. Advances in technology and outsourcing labor to cheaper markets have shrunk what was once the driver of the American economy. Today less than 13 million people work in manufacturing, down from nearly 20...
Agribusiness Workers Compensation: A Briefing for 2022
Agriculture, Staff Picks, Trends
Farm work—while entrenched in American culture—is backbreaking work, which is why the machinery and technology innovations of the 20th century were a welcome replacement for much of the human labor. But unlike commodity crops like corn and soybeans, fruit, vegetable,...
Construction Workers Compensation: A Briefing for 2022
Construction, Safety, Staff Picks, Trends
The size, nature, and economic importance of the construction industry make it a compelling study in workers compensation. Workers perform some of the most dangerous jobs there are, and an abundance of regulations exist to protect them. As a result, construction...
Facilitating Risk Tech Adoption in 2022
Business Growth, Compliance, Incidents & Claims, Safety, Trends
There is a disconnect in the current workers compensation market. Rates are effectively based on a snapshot of the company and industry taken years prior. A policyholder can lower their premium if they experience fewer losses. But even with zero losses, it takes time....
Worker Mental Health a Key Focus for Manufacturing Safety Culture
COVID-19, Manufacturing, Safety, Trends
In the wake of two years of pandemic living, most Americans are confronting stress in their lives on a daily basis, at home and at work. Your clients in the manufacturing sector were already feeling the strain before COVID-19, as a 2017 Mental Health America study...
A Matter of Growing Concern: Agricultural Workers in Smoky Conditions
Agriculture, Farm Labor, Risk, Safety, Trends
With wildfires becoming more frequent in more regions of the US, the health hazards of working outdoors in smoky air is at issue for hundreds of thousands of workers—not just those fighting the fires—and workers don’t have to be that close to the fire to be affected....
How Mental Health is Being Addressed in the Construction Industry
In an industry that can be deadline-oriented in the best of times, the pandemic and nationwide supply chain shortages have compounded stressful conditions for many of your construction clients and their employees. Workers are stretched thin. They’re concerned...
Construction is Booming in These Four States—Are Your Clients Ready?
The construction industry is a significant contributor to the U.S. economy, responsible for 4.1% of the nation’s gross domestic product and employing 5.3% of the country’s total workforce. While the COVID-19 pandemic stalled many sectors of the economy for a period of...