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| Are you getting injured employees back to work? Are frontline supervisors involved in the return-to-work process? |
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A rigorous return-to-work program is critical to lowering workers' compensation costs and bringing employees back to work as soon as they are medically able. However, far too often companies allow the program to languish on a shelf or become consigned to a staff function with no accountability for the employee.
Alternatively, some companies simply turn the function over to their insurance company or claim administrator. In such cases, the responsibility of reaching out to injured employees and managing their transition back to the workplace is left in the hands of a third party, potentially leaving the employee feeling alienated and confused.
Just because the program is documented does not mean it is effective. Front-line supervisors must be actively engaged in the process, if companies and employees are going to get the most out of the return-to-work program.
Organizations that lower the cost of employee risk have one thing in common: They have learned how to successfully give managers the responsibility of managing injured employees back to work.
What Will You Say When They Ask What Happened?
Executives looking for ways to control costs and reinvigorate their return-to-work programs should ask themselves the following questions:
- Is there an urgent need to reduce workers' compensation costs?
- Is there a lack of management involvement and support?
- Are front-line supervisors actively involved in returning employees back to their full-time jobs after a workplace injury?
- Do I have more employees out of work or on transitional duty than my peers? Am I experiencing longer lost-time claim durations?
Who's Looking Out for You?
Marsh's Employee Management Program (EMP) is a structured process that holds operational management accountable for transitioning employees who have suffered on-the-job injuries back to their regular full-time jobs. EMP focuses everyone's attention on a single issue, which is reducing lost time claims, and helps employers take immediate action — that means fast results.
For many employees, relationships with their supervisors can make a crucial difference in how quickly they accept modified duty and then return to a full, regular work schedule. EMP teaches managers to align their actions with the workers' compensation system, medical providers, and employees.
Marsh's EMP focuses on:
- Teaching managers and supervisors how to efficiently deal with employees at the time of injury and throughout the recovery process
- Holding operational management responsible for employees who are not in their regular job duties
- Ensuring commitment by all levels of management to return injured employees to their pre-injury jobs
EMP can help reduce the number of employees in all lost time categories, including modified work. It can help decrease the duration of lost-time claims and minimize both direct and indirect costs associated with the injury.
Critical to the success of the program is visible participation from senior executives and commitment from operational management. Here, Marsh's EMP training program can make a critical difference. Marsh consultants can help you:
- Change operational management's perspective of the workers' compensation system, medical providers, and injured employees
- Ensure that supervisors understand their role within the return-to-work process
- Give managers tools to bring injured employees back to work as soon as possible
- Teach managers how to access and gain support from their resources
If you have any questions or would like additional information, please contact us.
If you are seeking information about insurance and related services, please visit marsh.com.
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