Return-to-Work: Light Duty and Accommodations Enable Workers’ Recovery

A well-managed program that returns injured workers to their jobs—even in a temporarily reduced capacity—is a win-win for employers and workers. For employers, it reduces the cost of workers’ compensation claims and disability benefits, increases workplace productivity and morale, and decreases turnover. For employees, it can be even more important: A light-duty assignment or appropriate accommodation can be the thing that enables their full recovery.

Here’s how accommodations and light-duty assignments help workers get back on the job.

Making the Job Fit the Injured Worker

A worker who has medical needs and restrictions may have requirements that a healthy employee does not—but sometimes, a simple accommodation will make the job fit the worker in a way that enables the employee to return almost fully to his or her regular duties. For example:

• If a worker cannot lift more than 10 pounds following surgery, but lifting was only a marginal part of his job duties, perhaps any lifting could be reassigned.

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• If a worker loses a function (for example, if a worker can no longer walk), accommodations might include providing a wheelchair-accessible workspace.
• If a worker is confined to bed for an extended period after surgery, would it be possible for you to provide a home-based workstation and a manageable amount of work-from-home assignments during the recovery period?
• Another simple accommodation is to provide workers with time to attend to medical needs such as bandage changes or regular medical visits.

Mistakes Employers Make

Employers sometimes make the mistake of offering “make-work” duties that bring the worker into the workplace without actually giving the individual anything productive to do.

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Light-duty assignments should not amount to “no-duty” assignments. You will have to take the worker’s limitations into consideration, of course, but a worker who cannot lift may be able to do office work. A worker with restricted mobility can perform work that does not require walking around. Make sure that light-duty work is “real” work.

Want to find out about more ways that your safety program can increase workers’ productivity and decrease employers’ costs? You can find it at Safety.BLR.com®!