WHY RTW?

SETTING IT UP

COMMUNICATING

MANAGING AN INCIDENT

The many benefits of a Return to Work program.

• It doesn't take numerous injuries to raise insurance rates. It takes just one. Effectively managing injuries can help keep costs and rates in check.
• An injured employee on workers' compensation makes just 66% of his/her normal pay. Most employees want to get back to work and earn their normal compensation.
• According to research by the Menninger Foundation, there's a 60-day window to get employees back on the job. After that, a significant number never return.
• With an effective Return to Work program, most injured employees can return to meaningful work within 24 hours of being injured.
• Most employees interpret workplace involvement in their recovery as caring. It shows employers want them back working on their team.

WHY HAVE A RETURN TO WORK PROGRAM?

What is a Return to Work program? A Return to Work program is a plan your company can implement to manage your employees' safe and timely return to work after a workplace injury. It facilitates the earliest possible return of an injured employee to perform meaningful, productive work within the safe parameters of his or her physical recovery and capabilities. The program's main objectives are to manage the workplace injury and, if necessary, temporarily modify the employee's position or job description to accommodate the physical restrictions identified by the medical provider.

Here is a brief review of the many benefits, goals and objectives of implementing an effective Return to Work program—as they apply to you, your company, and your employees.

As an employer, you'll realize immediate advantages. In addition to the many employee benefits it provides, a well-managed RTW program will:

• Provide a structure for managing injuries.
• Foster communication between you, your employees, their claims examiner and medical providers.
• Speed recovery and help maintain your injured employee's self-esteem.
• Help your employees safely return to work sooner through incident management and transitional work programs. Researchers have also found that the longer workers stay off the job, the greater the chance they won't return at all. Returning to a meaningful work situation helps ensure continued productivity and loyalty.
• Reduce incident costs for employers, employees and insurers.
• Manage the impact of injuries on your workers' comp premiums.
• Promote mutual respect and loyalty between you and your employees.
• Discourage fraudulent claims.

Your employees will see that a Return to Work program is much more than just a way for management to control company costs. It's actually one of their benefits. A carefully managed Return to Work program will:

• Reduce the financial impact of workplace absence.
• Increase self-esteem and aid in recovery. Studies show that carefully managed programs help employees maintain self-esteem and prevent depression.

Implementing your program is easy, and managing one over time has proven to be a seamless process for hundreds of businesses. Simply visit the Setting Up section to get started.

Learn more about SETTING UP your Return to Work program here.

Managing your program is even easier. In fact, you can get almost everything you need to successfully manage workplace injury incidents right here on this website. Simply visit the Managing an Incident section for a full list of downloadable forms and guidelines for managing your program.

Learn more about MANAGING your Return to Work program or an injury/incident.