Chapter 13: Disability Management and Return to Work

Learning Objectives

 After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

o articulate the financial and legal motivations for disability management programs
o describe the goals and values of disability management programs
o discuss the important outcomes used to evaluate disability management efforts
o discuss the best practices in disability management programming

Learning Objectives

 After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

o consider the benefits of return-to-work planning
o describe the common methods and approaches used in workplace accommodation
o identify the stakeholders in disability management programs
o consider potential barriers to successful disability management

Disability Management and Return to Work

 Organizations can use disability management to:

o Prevent workplace injuries and illnesses
o Facilitate successful return to work for injured employees
 There are many reasons for organizations to engage inactive disability management
 There’s always an element of prevention – you want to make sure people don’t get
injured.

Motives for Disability Management

 Financial Motives
o More than 300 million workplace accidents occur worldwide per year
o Workplace disability costs about 4% of global GDP
o In Canada
 2017: 251 625 claims for lost-time injuries
 2017: For every 100 workers, there were 1.58 lost-time injuries
compensated

Motives for Disability Management

 Moral and Social Motives

o Emotional and health costs associated with not working:
 Higher rates of depression, social exclusion, anxiety
 Work is a source of meaning, identity, and social support
 Legal Motives
o In Canada, human rights legislation protects the rights of injured workers
o Duty to accommodate and undue hardship
Motives for Disability Management

 Legal Motives
o Duty to accommodate:
 Legislated responsibility of employers to accommodate workers who are
attempting to return to work following aninjury or illness via changes in
job tasks and/or the workenvironment to enable workers with a temporary
or permanent disability to perform work productively

Motives for DisabilityManagement

 Legal Motives
o Undue hardship
 Aspect of human rights legislation that means employersmust
accommodate the needs of a disabled worker unless thenecessary
modifications would lead to health and safetydifficulties or present
unsustainable economic or efficiencycosts

Disability Management

 Disability Management Programs:

o Proactive employerpracticesto prevent or reduceworkplace disability, intervening
early in risk orinjury, and providing coordinated management andrehabilitation
functions to promote workers’ recoveryand safe and timely return to work

Disability Management

 Disability management programs are most effective using a systems approach

 Usually companies that have high-risk associated they start figuring out what type of
injury can occur.
 Systems Approach: Emphasizes the work and organizational context
 When disability management efforts are fully integrated into the workplace, the
workplace culture reflects the overarching commitment to prevention and restoration.

Assessing Disability Management Programs

 Primary Values for Disability Management Programs:

o Safe and productive employment for individuals, including those with disabilities
o Reduced incidence and impact of workplace injury and illness
o Loss time injury – and try to reduce the average time for loss time injury.
o Try to shrink the average that means potentially this disability management
program is working

AssessingDisabilityManagementPrograms

 Indicators of program success:

 o Decreased rates of incidents and illness
o Shorter duration of work disability
o Reduced associated costs (e.g., wage replacement)
o Sustained return to work – we’re not just aiming to bring them to work, we want
to “keep” them working. Bringing them in to early and the injury is not better they
might get injured again and you are able to sustain them.
o Improved quality of life -

Best Practices in Disability Management

 People-Focused Climate
o Values human resources and supports safety initiatives
o Employees have a voice in the program
o employees educated on company’s safety values and disability management
program
 Prevention Focus (Prevention First theme)
o Efforts to reduce the incidence of illness and injury in the workplace. This reduces
costs for companies.
o Things you should keep in mind – make it people-focused, get peoples say and
how they like it. HR committes are committees we’re staff are involved in
discussing ideas that generates from HR.
o Check up on them – keep them updated about the company, don’t have to bring
them back right away.

Best Practices in Disability Management

 Early Intervention
o Reduce risks for injury and illness
o Looks for patterns in absence data and intervene to prevent short-term absences
into becoming long-term absences
o Make “early and considerate” contact with injured workers
o Early – depends. There’s no magic number.

Best Practices in Disability Management

 Education
o Supervisors play important roles in prevention and in return to work. They need to
be trained in all aspects of the programming.
o The supervisor makes early contact with an injured employee
o The supervisor works with the return-to-work coordinator toensure that work
modifications for a returning employeeaddress the needs of both the returning
worker and thesupervisors and coworkers.
o You can involve the supervisor, and educate and update them on return to work
plans.

Disability Management
  Return-to-Work (RTW) Case Management
o Co-ordinated appropriate, timely, and efficient services for ill andinjured
employees
o The goals are to enhance the injured worker’s quality of life and,if possible,
reduce the costs associated with care
o Return-to-work coordinatorcan be responsible for casemanagement
 Integrated claims management and monitoring systems
o Facilitates multiple aspects of process (e.g., insurance claimsprocess) and eases
experience claims and RTW experience foremployees

Return-to-Work Planning

 Return-to-Work Plan:
o Collaboratively developed, individualized plan that identifies andinjured or ill
worker’s return-to-work goals
 WorkplaceAccommodation
o Modifications to the arrangement of work that promote early andsafe return to
work for injured, ill, or disabled workers
o Vital aspect of RTW planning
o Associated with reduced disability duration and reduced disabilitycosts

Return to Work Planning

 Types of Workplace Accommodation:

o Light-duty work
 Workers return in a capacity that is less demanding thantheir regularjob
o Gradual work exposure
 Form of light-duty work where hours and expected dutiesslowly increase
 Also referred to as work hardening.

Return to Work Planning

 Types of Workplace Accommodation:

o Work trials
 Workers return to work on a trialbasis
o Supported and sheltered work
 Modified work arrangements to help those with permanent disabilitieswho
require substantial support
 Supported Work: accommodation offered in regular work environments
 Sheltered Work: accommodation offered in special worksites via
socialservices

Return to Work Planning

 Physical Demands Analysis (PDA)

o Standardized evaluation of the physical and cognitive demands of ajob
  Functional Ability Assessment (FAA)
o A standardized assessment of an injured or ill worker’s ability toperform job tasks
 PDA and FAA can help identify the types of job modificationsand accommodations that
would lead to a safe and earlyreturn to work for an injured worker

Stakeholders in DisabilityManagement

 Injured or ill workers

 Employers
 Unions
 Health care providers
 Insurance providers
 Governments
 Disability management contractors
 Slow downs in the process (e.g.,paperwork delays)

 Psychosocial factors
 Fear
 Long absences

Barriers to Return to Work

 Disability-related absence often has three stages:

o Acute (1–30 days)
o Subacute (31–90 days)
o Chronic (91 + days)
 Long absences can be a barrier to successful return to work
 Private insurers estimate average length of a chronicdisability is nearly three years
 When early and safe return is possible, facilitating earlyreturn is important for all
stakeholders

Barriers to Return to Work

 Labour market re-entry programs can help an individual whocannot return to the original
workplace
 During labour market re-entry process, the injured, ill, ordisabled worker’s capabilities,
experience, and training arereviewed
 Additional skills training may be provided to help that workerfind employment that
provides earnings comparable to thosein the previous job

Chapter 14

Workplace Wellness:

Work–Family and Health Promotion Programs

Learning Objectives

 After reading this chapter, students should be able to:

o discuss the concept of healthy workplaces
o describe the goals of worksite health promotion and family-friendlyprograms
o discuss the various types of worksite health promotion and family-
friendlyprograms and comment on their effectiveness
o identify variables critical to the success of worksite health promotion andfamily-
friendly programs
o discuss the importance of systematic evaluation of worksite healthpromotion and
family-friendly policies

WorkplaceWellness Programming

 Active attempts should be made to ensure healthy andsafe work environment

 90% of American companies with more than 200employees offer health-related programs
 Canadian companies offer a range of wellness programs
o E.g., 61% offer fitness and nutrition programs
o E.g., 42% offer stress management programs

Workplace Health Promotion

Workplace WellnessProgramming

Work–Family Conflict:Family-Friendly Policies in the Workplace

Family-Friendly Policies

 Work–Family Conflict
o Inter-role conflict where pressures in the work and familydomains are
incompatible
o Associated with reduced work performance and increasedabsenteeism
o Prevalence concern for Canadian employees
o Costly for organizations and individuals

Family-Friendly Policies

 Flexible Work Arrangements (FWAs)

o Modifications to traditional work schedule
o Two broad types of FWAs

Family-Friendly Policies:Flexible Work Arrangements

FWA Type 1:

Reduced Time in Workplace

  Compressed Workweek
o Full-time hours infewer days/week
 Job Splitting
o 2 people divide theresponsibilities of a job
 Job Sharing
o 2 people share theresponsibilities of a job

FWA Type 2:

Increase Control of Schedule

 Flextime
o Employees to havevariable start and finishwork times
 Flexplace
o AKA telecommuting
o Employees completework assignments awayfrom the office

Family-Friendly Policies
Family-Friendly Policies

 Personal Leave Systems

o Policies that involve leave time for employees

Family-Friendly Policies

 Personal Leave Systems

o Maternity leave
o Parentalleave (with or without top-ups)
o Personal days
o Family leave
o Sickleave

Leaves under ESA:

 •https://www.ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0
Family-Friendly Policies:Family Care Benefits

Family-Friendly Policies

 Family Care Benefits

o Examples:
 Daycare benefits
 Eldercare benefits

Family-Friendly Policies:An Evaluation

  Difficult to gauge availability of programming:
o A study of >30 000 Canadian employees reported FWAsavailable to 49.4%
o Another study of 25 000 employees found that 27% reportedhigh levels of
flexibility at work
 Researchoften inconclusive, but meta-analyticevidence suggests modest positive effects

Family-Friendly Policies:An Evaluation

 Context matters:
o E.g., telework has more positive effects for those with moreautonomy in their
work
 Organizational outcomes:
o Flexible work options have positive effects on job satisfaction andperformance
o ROI: $1.68 for every $1 invested in family-friendlyprograms
o Impact onorganizational performance is uncertain
 Availabilityof family-friendly programs versus employeeuptake of these programs?(Not
usingfamily-friendly policiesfor fear of negativeaffecton theircareerprogress)

Health Promotion Programs

Health Promotion Programs

 Health Promotion:

Combination of diagnostic, educational, and behavioural modificationactivities designed to

support attainment and maintenance of positivehealth

 Health and productivitymanagement programs integratehealth promotion activities

toincrease employee well-being anddecrease the organization’shealth-related costs, such
asabsenteeism and reduced workperformance
Health Promotion Programs

Health Promotion Programs

 Employee and family assistance programs (EFAPs)

o Provide counselling and assistance to employees and their familymembers with
problems that may interfere with workerproductivity like:
 Alcohol and other drug abuse
 Emotional or behavioural problems among family members
 Financial or legal problems
o Services are accessible and confidential
Health Promotion Programs

Health Promotion Programs

Health Promotion Programs

Stress ManagementPrograms

Educateworkers about the causes and consequences ofstressand to teach skills for managing
physiological andpsychologicalsymptoms.

o Cognitive-Behavioural Skills Training

 Helps people to think about events in new ways and to be awareof how
they view stressful events
 Provides skills for coping with stress
o Relaxation Training, Meditation, and Mindfulness
 Relaxation training focuses on relaxing the physical body
 Meditation focuses on quieting the mind
 Mindfulness brings attention to the present moment
o Increasing Social Support

Health Promotion Programs

 Stress Management
o How effective are stress-management programs?
 More comprehensive studies are needed
 Review studies suggest that cognitive-behaviouralinterventions appear to
be the most effective
Health Promotion Programs

Health Promotion Programs:Lifestyle Programming

Health Promotion Programs

 Worksite Health Promotion: Lifestyle Changes

o Most common programs are designed to affect an employee’shealth practices or
physical lifestyle
 Smoking cessation
 Alcohol and drug testing
 Hypertension screening
 Nutrition and weight control
 Physical fitness programs

Health Promotion Programs

 Lifestyle Programming
o Steps insecondary-levelhealth promotionprograms:
 Step 1: Physical or psychological assessment
 Step 2: Counselling concerning findings andrecommendations about
personal health promotion
 Step 3: Referral to in-house or community-based resources

Health Promotion Programs

  Lifestyle Programming
o Steps intertiary-levelhealth promotion programs:
 The identification of currently symptomatic as well as high-riskindividuals
 The appropriate referral or treatment of individuals
 Treatment directed at the symptom, delivered by the
appropriateprofessionals
 Follow-up with the client to ensure the treatment was effective
 Evaluation of health improvement and cost efficacy

Health Promotion Programs

 Developing a Successful Program

o Keep program in line with workplace goals and values
o Consider multiple factors that influence health, includingthose at the individual,
cultural, and policy factors
o Target programs to a range of health issues
o Tailor programs to meet specific needs
o Aim for high participation
o Engage in thorough evaluation
o Communicate program success to the stakeholders

Health Promotion Programs

 Unintended Consequences of WHP Programs

o Reduction of health care use by employees may lead to higher unitcosts
o Participation in fitness programs may cause work disruptions,increase fatigue,
lower performance, and increase accidentsamong those starting a program
o Health promotion can cause friction among workers
o Diagnosis of previously unknown risk factors may contribute toabsenteeism (e.g.,
doctor’s appointments)

Health Promotion Programs

 Overall Evaluation
o There are mixed results:
 Some studies show workplace health promotion programsreduce
absenteeism
 Lack of systematic research on various categories ofprograms make it
difficult to reach a definitive conclusionabout efficacy
 Studies often have methodological flaws

Final Exam Review: 3,6,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 – 6 and 8 not a lot of questions

Chapter 3:
Which of the following is an example of earnings loss payment?
Ans: D – someone who comes back to work, supplemented for the difference

If you develop lung diseases from working in a bakery?

Ans: Compensation while you seek treatment

When a worker is injured, what parties are needed ? Ans: employer, employee and physician

What’s the numeric basis on which workers compensation rate the group premiums are calculated and
public? Ans: dollars per 100 dollars on insurance earnings

Wcb PREMIUM given org is always the same as other organizations? False

Chapter 9:

What’s the first questions that needs to be answered for training design of delivery? Ans: always ask the
first objective and identify it

According to social learning theory what four mental processes social leaning? Ans: attention, memory,
control, motivation

When do trainees engage in physical and social events that are designed to….?Ans: simulations

Which of the following results in NOT assessed after training? Ans: presenteeism

Examination of the org safety climate is one to determine the org support ? Ans: True

Chapter 10:

What equation defines safety performance? Ans: ability X motivation X skill

What’s the basic underline most application behavioural programming in the workplace? Ans:

ABC model (anticipation, behaviour and communication)

Meric is a drilling supervisor, his job is to dismantle and move and set up a new side as quickly as safely
as possible? Ans: Intellectual c

Safety compaliance refers to employee behaviour that goes beyond participation? False

Josh would be characterized as a transformation leader, to challenge ? True

Chapter 11:

Dividing a sight into small areas, coworkers identified? Answer: evacuation plan

What element appears in a fire something model that does now appear in a fire something? Ans:
chemical reaction

What’s the ultimate goal of an emergency lost plan? Ans: to ensure a low level of loss
Incase if a train derallament in the immediate areas where should the ees….? Ans: designated assembly
areas

Multiple session of CISD are more of… - Ans: True

Chapter 12

An incident investigation that is conduction appropriately should help and determine which of the
following? answer: how to prevent similar incidents

Who generally has primary response for an investigation? Ans: Supervisor

Why can’t witness recall become the steward if investigation is not done in a timely manner?
Ans:Discuss the incident with others

The theory of normal incident would be more likely to be used investigating incidents? Ans: Oil refineries

It is recommended that incidents you report to the compensation board within 3 days…? Ans:TRUE

Chapter 13:

Sophia is a psychology grad student, whose research project.. disability ..which of the following factors
least likely to be in her research? Ans: An incident report leading to the injury

Which of the following is an example of light duty work (back work injury)? Ans: Nurse

What should supervisor avoid saying when the injured worker comes back to work? Ans: occupational
thearpy program

Which of the following no considered best practice in disability management ? Ans: for recovery

Health workers filling paoers work is a barrier to return to work”- Ans: true

Chapter 14-

What would be the most suitable flexible work arrangement, who wants a work arrangement 8:30 to
1:0pm? Ans: job splitting

Which of the following occurs when using a compressed work people as a family-something program?
Ans: compressed work week – full-time hours

Lifestyle programming can be classified as the and into the 3 categories…? Ans: screening, educational,
behavioural change

Which of the following is a challenge that organizations face in regard to participation in health
promotional programs that they do not face when it comes to safety? Ans: can’t force employee to
participate

Which of the Following is considered health promotion program? Ans: lifestyle program

Which of the following occurs as family friendly policies of the flexible work arrangement? Ans:
modifying the work schedule