The Ontario Compensation Employees Union (OCEU), which represents more than 3,700 employees at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) and the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association, is warning that the Ontario government's review of the WSIB could make services worse for injured workers rather than improve them. The review was announced on August 5, 2026, by Ontario Treasury Board President Peter Bethlenfalvy as part of a broader examination of eight provincial agencies. The government says the reviews are intended to improve efficiency, governance, and productivity while protecting frontline services.OCEU president Harry Goslin questions the need for the WSIB review, arguing that staffing levels among unionized employees have remained largely unchanged for three to five years while workloads have continued to increase.
He says that if the WSIB had excess frontline staff, workload problems should be improving, but that has not happened. Goslin believes the government should instead examine the growth in non-union positions, including senior leadership and vice-president roles.The union is also concerned about a hiring freeze and an employee cap that the Treasury Board has imposed on both unionized and non-union WSIB staff. Goslin says the WSIB has not disclosed the details of the cap, leading the union to pursue the information through a Freedom of Information request.
The union is now appealing after the WSIB failed to respond within the initial 30-day period.Goslin also raises concerns about the recent closure of the Second Injury and Enhancement Fund (SIEF). The 80-year-old program was originally created in 1945 to support veterans returning to the workforce. It provided eligible employers with cost relief when a worker's pre-existing condition contributed to a workplace injury.
Although a value-for-money audit concluded that the program provided little benefit to employers, Goslin disagrees based on his experience working with injured workers. He argues that SIEF helped employers support workers with pre-existing conditions and reduced the financial risk of bringing those workers back to work.The union is also questioning why the WSIB was selected for the government's review given its financial position. Goslin points to the WSIB's approximately $40 billion in assets and says the organization has returned $21.5 billion in cumulative savings and rebates to Ontario employers since 2018.Another major concern is the mental health of WSIB employees.
Goslin says union research found that workers experiencing workload-related anxiety and depression were reporting rates roughly twice the national average. He believes the review could worsen these problems if it leads to further staffing reductions or increased workloads instead of addressing the existing pressures on employees.Overall, OCEU argues that the WSIB's main problem is not excessive staffing but an ongoing workload and staffing shortage. The union is warning that reducing resources or imposing further limits on employees could ultimately harm the frontline services that injured Ontario workers depend on.
