Victoria and NSW are cutting their workers’ compensation premiums, with NSW claiming a 15% cut in the past six months and Victoria announcing a 10% cut from July 1.

At 1.62% of a business’s wage costs, Victoria is claiming the lowest rate in the scheme’s history and – according to WorkCover Minister John Lenders – the lowest in the country.

He says the Victorian scheme’s rate will be about 25% lower than NSW employers pay.

The Victorian scheme is one of the few fully funded workers’ compensation programs in Australia, and Mr Lenders doesn’t expect the rate cut to affect that.

The NSW scheme has been improving over the past five years, even as it suffered under a multi-billion dollar deficit.

A spokesman for Commerce Minister John Della Bosca says the average premium has fallen 15% over the past six months, and the NSW WorkCover Authority expects the scheme to return to a surplus in the near future.

Mr Lenders says Victoria’s new rates will be the lowest in the country, about 25% lower than in NSW.