Return to work programs are critical for protecting businesses from exposure and ensuring a clear path forward for injured workers. Without a Return to Work (RTW) program, your client risks major expenses from compensation claims as well as the loss of talented team members.
What is a Return to Work program?
After an injury, a worker may be unable to perform their full duties. A Return to Work program transitions injured workers back into their jobs with limited or lighter workloads than their usual obligations.
These programs enable injured employees to easily transition back into work and stay engaged with the workplace.
Without a RTW program, your client may face a variety of different risks, including:
Loss of a talented employee: A return to work program provides a clear path for an injured employee to return to work. Without it, they may feel neglected and unengaged.
If they don’t see a future for themselves at your client’s company, they may seek employment elsewhere. This can leave the client with the loss of a skilled team member and the expense of training a replacement.
Maximum exposure: A RTW program protects your client from the maximum exposure by allowing the employee to return to work sooner. This is beneficial for all parties involved since it allows for at least limited productivity during the recovery process. Further, it reduces the total costs of claims and how long the claim takes to settle.
Without one, your client may pay for the full cost of recovery in addition to the lost production during the recovery process.
No clear way to assess fitness for work: A comprehensive RTW program includes a detailed description of the job and its duties. This description is used in part by medical providers to assess fitness for work.
Without that detailed description, medical professionals must make their decision based on the assessment of the injured worker. This may lead to misconceptions surrounding the actual requirements of work, extending the time period in which the injured worker is considered unfit to return and increasing costs.
Benefits of a Return to Work program:
Avoid the expense of a temporary employee: Even at partial capacity, having an injured employee able to fill their role allows a business to avoid hiring a temporary or permanent replacement.
Increased productivity: While they may not be able to fulfill all of their original duties, it is better to have a team member working at partial capacity instead of staying at home.
Maintain morale: If you want 110% from your team, they need to know you care. A return to work program shows employees that their employer takes interest in their wellbeing. This reduces turnover and the probability of an expensive injury claim for your client.
How do I create a comprehensive Return to Work program?
A return to work program has enormous benefits for both employers and employees. It is critical that any RTW program is comprehensive, providing a clear process for injured employees to return to full capacity at their jobs.
If your clients have questions about return to work programs, the experts at Jencap are available to provide advice and best practices for setting up a comprehensive program.
Schedule an appointment with one of our agents to get started today!
