How to offer modified work to employees with a workplace injury without restrictions from a health professional is a common question from employers. In very simple situations, which will be explained during our discussion on Linkedin Thursday, June 13, an employer does NOT need a health care practitioner to provide restrictions prior to the offer of modified work. I know! I know! Employers are [...]
I've had the pleasure lately to talk to a few organizations about disability and wellness, and unfortunately, I seem to be the only one with a different mindset. For those of you that are inclined to read and listen, you may actually be the fortunate ones. Employers believe that weight loss and exercise is the way to wellness and reduced disability claims. I'm thinking [...]
The 'own occ to any occ gap' is one of those vortex or black holes in claims management where employees drift off into never never land. Employers do not typically handle these well because they usually come as a surprise. I could say it's a gift to the organization but it really isn't. It's a conundrum. What it is, is fairly easy to explain; [...]
All too often, the inconsistencies in claims management comes from not having a systematic process that you can rely on for ultimate success in reducing disability loss, whether this be financial, or an employee's absence. In today's times, employers make choices on the employee's absenteeism and work record as to how they are going to manage a particular claim. From a Human Rights perspective, [...]
WSIB has a campaign to eliminate workplace accidents called Road to Zero. In one of my earlier blogs, I wrote that I thought this was impossible. I still believe this today, unfortunately. Accidents happen all the time. The whole point of safety in the workplace is to reduce and/or eliminate them from happening but they continue to happen. With the new Rate Framework to [...]
Doctors are extremely busy professionals and will provide a ‘note’ regarding an employee’s ability to return to work or to stay off of work when requested. ‘Does it suffice for your work environment’ is the question? The answer is, ‘it depends’. If you provided the doctor with clear expectations as to what needs to be on the note to assist you in the return [...]
With over 30 years as an Occupational Health Nurse in Ontario and I thought that toxic environments were slowly fading but not so much. While we continue to struggle with increasing awareness about Mental Health issues in the workplace, reducing our workplace injuries and managing our absenteeism, a toxic workplace negatively feeds the souls of many employees and management team alike. It has the [...]
Staff members leave their positions for a variety of reasons, but the number one reason that they STAY and EXCEL is the corporate culture. They are looking for somewhere inclusive, where they feel valued and appreciated for their hard work. According to WhatIs.com, corporate culture is the pervasive values, beliefs and attitudes that characterize a company and guide its practices. You can almost think [...]
In today’s times, there remains an increase in disability claims throughout Canada, despite the efforts of MANY case managers to reduce absenteeism for employers. We see the increase in health care costs, benefit costs, production costs, overtime and replacement costs throughout organizations. The numbers continue to rise. So why isn’t claims management working? Because…. You NEVER get to the root of WHY an employee [...]
Skyrocketing CostsIncreasing AbsenteeismLack of Internal Expertise The decade or 2 of outsourcing disability management claims may be coming to an end. In the 1990’s, outsourcing was a trendy thing to do. However, today many organizations have decided that it is more economical to hire an internal disability manager. This may be true in the short term but unless you have sufficiently invested in the [...]
