1. Change in Status (Ownership, Operations and Employees)
The following rules govern the use of past experience in future experience ratings whenever a change in ownership, management, control, operations or employees occurs. Experience of the past shall be used in future experience ratings, unless a material change in ownership, as specified in paragraph a, is accompanied by a material change in operations or employees as specified in paragraph b.
a. Change in Ownership A change in ownership is material only if the owner or owners prior to the change in ownership own less than a one-half interest after the change in ownership. An ownership interest acquired by a member of the immediate family of a prior owner shall be treated the same as though the ownership interest was acquired by the prior owner.
b. Change in Operations or Employees
(1) A change in operations is material only if:
(a) the operations (that underwent the material change in ownership) were changed during the first ninety (90) days following the material change in ownership to such an extent that the process and the hazard to which the employees (who conduct such operations) are exposed differ substantially from the process and the hazard to which they were exposed prior to the material change in ownership, and
(b) the change in operations results in a reclassification of the operations by the WCIRB.
(2) Where all of the risk undergoes a material change in ownership, a change in employees is material only if:
(a) a majority of the employees who conduct the operations (that underwent the material change in ownership) for any period of time within the first ninety (90) days following the material change in ownership were not employed to conduct such operations for any period of time within the ninety (90) days immediately preceding the material change in ownership, and
(b) a majority of the payroll earned by the employees who conduct the operations (that underwent the material change in ownership) for any period of time within the first ninety (90) days following the material change in ownership was earned by employees who were not employed to conduct such operations for any period of time within the ninety (90) days immediately preceding the material change in ownership.
(3) Where less than all of the risk undergoes a material change in ownership, a change in employees (with respect to that portion of the risk that underwent the material change in ownership) is material only if:
(a) less than one-half of the employees employed by the entire risk for any period of time within the ninety (90) days immediately preceding the material change in ownership are also employed for any period of time within the first ninety (90) days following the material change in ownership to conduct the operations that underwent the material change in ownership, and
(b) the payroll earned during the first ninety (90) days following the material change in ownership by those employees who conduct the operations that underwent the material change in ownership and who were also employed by the risk for any period of time within the ninety (90) days immediately preceding the material change in ownership is less than one-half of the payroll earned by all employees of the risk during the ninety (90) days immediately preceding the material change in ownership.