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Marriott and Panda Restaurant Group honored for workers' comp programs

The Theo Awards highlighted efforts to cut fraud and abuse, improve claim handling speed, and better support injured associates.

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Risk & Insurance rounded up the 2026 Theo Hospitality and Food Service Award winners, featuring workers’ compensation program overhauls at major hospitality and restaurant companies.

With 15 months in the role, Marriott’s new vice president of global claims reviewed a workers’ compensation program that had operated largely unchanged for decades and launched a methodical effort aimed at adding consistency and speed, and improving the associate experience.

Panda Restaurant Group, meanwhile, addressed what the outlet described as a workers’ compensation crisis by building an in house investigative team to crack down on fraud and abuse while also making it easier for genuinely injured employees to return to work.

The Theo Award program, now in its sophomore year, recognized 28 workers’ compensation programs for their excellence and service to workers across the nation, with additional commentary noting that even as claim frequency has trended downward, claim complexity has been rising.

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