In this interview segment, the speaker outlines a collaborative, team-oriented framework for managing return-to-work (RTW) processes after a workplace injury. The team comprises the employer (including written RTW policies and supervisors/managers), the injured worker, treating physicians, and the insurance adjuster. The speaker highlights common conflicts: adjusters may prioritize rapid claim closure while employers may resist keeping an injured employee, or vice‑versa. Clear policies, active participation from all parties, and a cohesive, well‑communicated team are presented as essential for an effective RTW program.
Chapters
Return to work is a team approach to the return to work process, and let me describe the team to you. You have the employer. From the employer standpoint, part of what the employer should do is have policies in place that address return to work. So for example, they should have written policies that they can hand to an injured worker after the accident that says, "These are the steps that I want you to follow in order to get you back to work." They should have clear policies for their supervisors and managers. So from the employer side of the room, the employer needs to be on the team, the supervisors and managers need to be on the team. Now, the injured worker has to be a participant in the team. You then move one step further and you go to the physicians, the physicians who treat the injured worker at the very beginning of the claim and the ones who manage their, their injury from the beginning to the end. So that's another key factor in the team process. The other factor is the adjuster, the insurance company. I think one of the frustrations that I've had especially when you're managing workers' comp, is you'll get the adjuster who doesn't quite understand the dynamics of the employer's workplace, whose goal is, "Let's close the claim. Let's close this down right away." And the employer's goal is, "Well, why can't I keep this person here?" Or you get vice versa, where you get the employer who says, "You know what? He was a bad apple to begin with. Now that he's injured, this is gonna be my excuse to get this injured worker out the door." and then you have the adjuster who's pushing back saying, "I want you to keep this person working." So unless you create a cohesive team that everybody's on there, you don't have an effective return-to-work program.
