Employment Practices Liability Insurance is becoming an important part of a Florida medical or dental practice’s insurance portfolio, as more and more healthcare providers face a potential lawsuit by a disgruntled employee. Instead of griping by the water fountain, employees are resorting to employment practices lawsuits that have the potential of crippling a medical or dental practice. Healthcare providers in Florida are purchasing Employment Practices Liability Insurance to protect their practices from suits for such things as: wrongful termination, discrimination, failure to promote, breach of contract, alleged sexual harassment, wrongful hiring, etc.
Here are five things a Physician, Surgeon, Oral Surgeon, or Dentist in Florida should know about Employment Practices Liability Insurance:
- The average U.S. based business with at least 10 employees has a 12.5 percent chance of experiencing an employment practices-related lawsuit.
- During FY 2011 – 15,796 individuals filed 16,974 complaints alleging employment discrimination against the federal government.
- Wage and hour lawsuits have increased for seven straight years and have increased by 438 percent since 2000.
- 7,764 Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) cases were filed during the yearlong period ending March 31, 2013, up 10% from 2012.
- As of March 31, 2014, wage and hour lawsuits increased to 8,126, up 4.7 percent over the prior 12 month period.
While premiums are increasing, as more claims for Employment Practices Liability are filed against Physicians, Dentists and Oral Surgeons in Florida, there is still a competitive market for Employment Practices Liability Insurance. The bigger companies will provide excellent help in preparing employee manuals, offer webinars to staff, and generally provide risk management strategies. They retain the best labor attorneys to help their clients in the event of a lawsuit, and pay potential fines and penalties for their healthcare provider clients.
Based on an article published in Insurance Journal-National, June 16, 2016, page 14.