When Employees Return to Work After an Injury

Employees returning to work after a work-related injury can face many restrictions and hurdles during their reintegration into the workplace. These restrictions may include modified duty, physical limitations, and mental health. Most employers are willing to provide modified duty for their employees who have been injured on the job, as it provides an opportunity for the employer to support their employees and help them ease back into the workforce.

Developing and maintaining a well-thought-out return-to-work (RTW) program is vital to an organization's overall workers' compensation program. Detailed return-to-work programs are a way for an employer to help their employees recover from an injury. The RTW should be structured to the needs of the individual and their specific injury and flexible enough to accommodate changes in their condition or schedule limitations.

"Detailed return-to-work programs are a way for an employer to help their employees recover from an injury."

An RTW program provides benefits to both employees and employers in multiple ways.

• It enables the recovering employee to earn wages, allowing for the employee to regain financial security.
• Provides a return to social connections for the employee that they would have been receiving in the workplace, thereby supporting (in part) the employee's mental health.
• Details a safe path for the employee to return to work, identifies duties, acknowledges restrictions, and coordinates with any physician's guidance.

When developing your return-to-work program, you should have clear guidelines for eligibility, entrance and exit criteria, and transitional job opportunities or positions. Your RTW program's success depends on clear communication with employees, medical providers, and workers' compensation administrators.

A good RTW program takes significant time and effort to prepare. Working with a workers' compensation administrator to help develop a program can ensure that you meet any legislative and regulatory requirements for the program. Your first step should be to appoint a program coordinator with the skills and authority to engage all stakeholders in the RTW program. During your employee's journey through the RTW program, the employer's supervisors, team leaders, and human resources personnel should routinely check in with the employee for feedback and updates on their rehabilitation progress.

Ultimately, a program built on clear communication with the employee's abilities and interests in mind will provide significant cost savings for employers.