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Group Retro Updates: 2018, 2019 & 2020

We promised to keep you informed on the status of 2018 and 2019 policy year refunds from BWC’s Group Retro program. As it stands, no employers enrolled during those years will be receiving any refunds. Typically, in the fall of 2021 Group Retro participants should be receiving your first refund from the 2019 policy year and your second refund from the 2018 year. It’s important to understand that if these refunds are normally included in your budgeting process for the coming year, you should not factor that in. For more info on why BWC chose not to release these funds, and what Spooner is doing to help Ohio employers, check out our June blog entry on these missing Group Retro Refunds. If your company was enrolled in Group Retro for the 2020 year, your first refund will be paid out in the fall of 2022.

Since the 2020 policy year recently ended, we also have an updated outlook on those returns. Out of the 45 total Private Employer Group Retro pools in Ohio, data from BWC shows that 31 of them will have an assessment for their first year (due in fall 2022). This means that companies in that pool will be billed by BWC for a portion of 2020 premiums instead of receiving a refund. This is largely due to BWC moving to a system called ACES to determine reserves on claims as of July 1, 2020. We believe BWC is open to discussing changes to some of the variables used to calculate refunds in response to the impact ACES is having on 2020 Group Retro performance. Spooner has offered suggestions to the BWC and will continue to work on this important issue with BWC leadership in order to restore group retro refunds for Ohio employers.

To find out if your policy will be assessed and how much you may owe, complete this form and one of our sales staff will reach out to schedule a time to review the information. With TPAs currently churning out quotes for 2022 programs, we encourage you to be skeptical toward Group Retro offers promising upwards of 50% returns. While Group Retro is still a good fit for some companies, the days of high returns may be behind us until a change is made with the reserves system. Your TPA should be able to break down the savings advantages between Group Rating and Group Retro if you’re offered both. If you’re only eligible for Group Retro and don’t like the direction it’s taken recently – we welcome you to see how we’ve modernized the self-insured PEO space to make it work for you.

Posted By Brandy King in Ohio Bwc, Group Retro, Group Retrospective Rating, ACES, MIRA, Reserves, Group Retro Assessment, 2018 Group Retro, 2019 Group Retro

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Rehashing the Complexities of Marijuana in the Workplace

Posted By Brandy King
February 02, 2026 Category: Medical Marijuana, Drugs In The Workplace, Marijuana Rescheduled, Marijuana Breathalyzer, Cannabix, Thc Breath Test

Toward the end of 2025, President Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to expedite the rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. This is monumental in that it acknowledges that marijuana does, in fact, have valid clinical/medical uses and has low-to-moderate potential for abuse. Only four states in the U.S. still regard cannabis as being fully illegal, while another six allow only the cannabinoid CBD, which is known not to produce psychoactive effects. All other states have some version of legal or decriminalized marijuana, be it medical, recreational, or a combination of both. The first thing that’s important to note and is widely misunderstood is that this rescheduling does not legalize marijuana federally. As of January 28, 2026, Marijuana is still a Schedule I drug, since the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has not yet finalized this rule. Once they do cement this change, there could be some wide-sweeping changes to drug testing. The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) currently only allows testing for Scheduled I and II substances for federal and regulated drug-testing programs followed by DOT-regulated employees and other safety-sensitive positions. Truck drivers, pilots, transit operators, railroad employees, and pipeline workers are all currently subject to mandatory drug and alcohol testing, including marijuana. There has been talk of a

Unemployment Services with Spooner

Posted By Brandy King
February 02, 2026 Category: Ohio, Unemployment, Hr Outsourcing, Unemployment Claims, Fraud

If you haven’t considered trusting Spooner’s family of companies with managing your unemployment claims, maybe you’re not sure what it entails and how much time and hassle it could save. You may have also tried outsourcing this to another vendor in the past and found that their approach really didn’t save you much of anything. The team at Spooner Risk Control (which encompasses both Spooner Inc and SuretyHR) boasts over 15 years of experience managing unemployment claims, including an attorney that will represent your company at hearing. Many clients that are new to using our unemployment services have shared that past vendors still required them to log into their portal, submit all the responses and paperwork, then the vendor would send to the state. Our approach is to simply ask for the documentation, submit, and take care of everything. As an unemployment services client, you’d be asked to sign a third-party representation form that will allow any unemployment-related forms and letters to come directly to us so you’re not always the go-between. Here’s a run-down of the services you can expect as an Unemployment Services client: Monitor and report all new unemployment claims and notifications Submission of claims and responses after requesting information from the employer and submission of any rebuttals File and submit appeals on any base period unemployment notifications or allowed claims File appeals to the

New E-Verify Requirement for Non-Residential Construction (HB 246)

Posted By Brandy King
February 02, 2026 Category: I 9, Immigration, E Verify, Construction, Ohio Hb 246

If you weren’t paying close attention, you may have missed the passage of Ohio’s House Bill 246, or the E-Verify Workforce Integrity Act. This will require all Ohio nonresidential contractors, subcontractors, and labor brokers to confirm employees’ work eligibility through the federal E-Verify program. Nonresidential construction is defined in HB 246 as: “…The construction or renovation of any building, highway, bridge, utility, or related infrastructure, but does not include any of the following: (1) An industrialized unit, manufactured home, or a residential building as defined in section 3781.06 of the Revised Code; (2) A building or structure that is incidental to the use of the land on which the building or structure is located for agricultural purposes as defined in section 3781.06 of the Revised Code; (3) A mobile home as defined in section 4501.01 of the Revised Code.” Included employers are expected to be fully compliant with the E-Verify requirement by March 19, 2026. There are currently no exceptions being made for small businesses or sole proprietors, and E-Verify is a free service. Employers will enroll at www.e-verify.gov and create a new case for each new hire by entering info provided on their I-9 and should receive initial results in seconds. Once a final eligibility result is obtained, employers may close that employee’s case. The Act requires employers to maintain this verification record for three

Blog

Group Retro Updates: 2018, 2019 & 2020

Rehashing the Complexities of Marijuana in the Workplace

Unemployment Services with Spooner

New E-Verify Requirement for Non-Residential Construction (HB 246)

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