North American Risk Management, Inc. Loss Control

LIGHT DUTY - RETURN TO WORK PROGRAM

When an employee is injured in such a way that s/he is temporarily unable to perform all of the physical work tasks that their normal job requires, the employer is faced with making one of two choices:

·Allowing the worker to lay out of work, at home, drawing workers' compensation benefits.

Bring them into work, place them into a different, or modified position that complies with the health care professional's restrictions.

In virtually every case, the latter is preferred. Such a case is called a "Light Duty", or "Modified Work" position, under which a physician's (or other health professional's) restrictions are incorporated into the job demands.

Numerous studies have been conducted on the effects and cost-effectiveness of these kinds of programs; the following University of California study paper, although not recent, is typical.

What's Required?

First and foremost, a willingness on the part of a businesses' top management to accommodate workers who are injured, but can still do some work, and are willing to return to work. In fact, many businesses have no formalized Return-To-Work program beyond this willingness, and they "make it up as they go". Often, one or more components of an employee's regular job are modified, or removed, to comply with physical restrictions the returning employee may have.

Not absolutely necessary, but highly desirable, is an inventory of physical job demands which describe the physical demands and activities for a particular job position. This often is accomplished along with the recommended determination of "Essential Job Functions", under The Americans With Disabilities Act" (ADA). Physical job demand inventories are especially useful in large organizations, when finding a suitable, existing job for a returning worker, with as little as possible, or no job modification.

Especially for larger organizations, a more formalized program is recommended. This can help with everything from informing managers of the company's commitment to Return-To-Work, to referring injured employees to proper vocational rehabilitation specialists, to help them get back to full, unrestricted duty as soon as possible.

This paper will provide a discussion of benefits, components, and workings of such a program, as well as sample program elements such as policy statement.

This document is produced by the Texas State Workers' Compensation Commission, and while intended to be applicable to TX and some of the forms and procedures are peculiar to this state, there is very good information for anyone that is interested in establishing a return to work program. Highly recommended.

(Note: Individual files can be downloaded by right clicking on link and choosing "Save Target As". Files require Acrobat Reader to view, which can be downloaded for free by clicking on icon .)






		LIGHT DUTY - RETURN TO WORK PROGRAM When an employee is injured in such a way that s/he is temporarily unable to perform all of the physical work tasks that their normal job requires, the employer is faced with making one of two choices: ·Allowing the worker to lay out of work, at home, drawing workers' compensation benefits. Bring them into work, place them into a different, or modified position that complies with the health care professional's restrictions. In virtually every case, the latter is preferred. Such a case is called a "Light Duty", or "Modified Work" position, under which a physician's (or other health professional's) restrictions are incorporated into the job demands. Numerous studies have been conducted on the effects and cost-effectiveness of these kinds of programs; the following University of California study paper, although not recent, is typical. What's Required? First and foremost, a willingness on the part of a businesses' top management to accommodate workers who are injured, but can still do some work, and are willing to return to work. In fact, many businesses have no formalized Return-To-Work program beyond this willingness, and they "make it up as they go". Often, one or more components of an employee's regular job are modified, or removed, to comply with physical restrictions the returning employee may have. Not absolutely necessary, but highly desirable, is an inventory of physical job demands which describe the physical demands and activities for a particular job position. This often is accomplished along with the recommended determination of "Essential Job Functions", under The Americans With Disabilities Act" (ADA). Physical job demand inventories are especially useful in large organizations, when finding a suitable, existing job for a returning worker, with as little as possible, or no job modification. Especially for larger organizations, a more formalized program is recommended. This can help with everything from informing managers of the company's commitment to Return-To-Work, to referring injured employees to proper vocational rehabilitation specialists, to help them get back to full, unrestricted duty as soon as possible. This paper will provide a discussion of benefits, components, and workings of such a program, as well as sample program elements such as policy statement. This document is produced by the Texas State Workers' Compensation Commission, and while intended to be applicable to TX and some of the forms and procedures are peculiar to this state, there is very good information for anyone that is interested in establishing a return to work program. Highly recommended. Back to Top (Note: Individual files can be downloaded by right clicking on link and choosing "Save Target As". Files require Acrobat Reader to view, which can be downloaded for free by clicking on icon .)