If you're an employer with an injured worker who is currently out of work, the temporary total disability (TTD) meter is running! Whether it's staring at the meter at the gas pump, silently praying that it will soon stop, or imagining dollars going out the door everytime the air conditioning kicks on and you see your electric meter hypnotically spinning in circles...cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching, most of us have at least felt the pain at the pump or cringed when reviewing your summer-time electric bills.
We can blame the meteorologists and global warming, or grumble about the price of oil, but it's unlikely that we're going to stop using gasoline or electricity. The same goes for workers' compensation (WC) insurance. It's a requirement for the overwhelming majority of employers, and while there's little you can (legally) do to avoid having WC coverage, there are many ways to avoid overpaying. Don't worry, you won't have to start biking to work or start adopting the ways of the Amish life.
One of the most influential ways to reduce workers' compensation claim costs (and resulting impact on premium calculations) is to offer modified duty. If you have an injured worker who has restrictions that you [think] you cannot accommodate, the TTD meter is running. As a claim representative I was often outraged at the number of employers who didn't seem to be alarmed by this statement: "Each week that you do not offer modified duty, your policy is paying out $422 per week! Over the course of 12 weeks, that is $5,064!" It's not Monopoly™ money, it's real claims dollars. Dollars paid to an injured worker, who is capable of performing productive work.
Out of sight, out of mind?
Monday, July 29, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
5 Tips for identifying modified duty RTW options
1. Review job descriptions of other positions.
If you don't have job descriptions (tisk! tisk!) then think about the less physically demanding elements of each position within your company. Make a list of these tasks. Ask other managers or supervisors if they have any "extra" work that needs to be done. Most people have a name for this type of list...we'll call it the never-ending, ever-expanding to-do list. Sure, re-organizing the toolboxes on the trucks would help, but who has the time? Answer: Your injured employee! Yes, having well-stocked first aid kits in every vehicle would be a nicety, but who has the time? Answer: Your injured employee! Bonus tip: Keep this list in the same place you keep your WC insurance information -- there's no need to reinvent the wheel the next time you experience a lost time claim.
2. Ask the injured worker
It is astonishing how many employers don't involve the injured worker in the RTW conversation. I bet there are at least 10 things that you do, weekly, if not daily, that fall into the "other duties as assigned" category of your job description. Most likely, your boss doesn't even realize they're being done, but would sure notice if they weren't. The point is, the injured worker knows their job better than anyone else and if asked, they could probably identify at least a handful of things they could do. Offer a bit of cross-training and voila! That brings us to our next tip...
3. Offer a few hours of cross-training
The payoff for this tip can be extensive. There's nothing more frustrating than having one of your team members taken out of work when you need them. Consider any type of cross-training opportunities. Could they learn to answer the phones? Make follow up customer satisfaction calls? Could the injured worker learn to write estimates or coordinate deliveries? Even if it takes 10 hours to train someone, it could yield weeks of valuable, meaningful, productive modified duty. This could also free up some of your other team members to get to more pressing issues.
4. Add value to your organization with RTW
What if you could use a challenging situation (such as a WC claim) to increase sales or customer satisfaction? An example of this involves an appliance retailer. The injured worker couldn't deliver appliances, but knew how to operate them. Today's appliances involve many technological advances, buttons, self-cleaning, filters, etc. I, up until a few months ago, didn't know my microwave had a "potato" button. Apparently my mother-in-law didn't either. I was so excited to discover this feature, but wished that someone had shown me sooner! So, why not have the injured worker do a new customer orientation, demonstrating all of the functions of the appliance, best practices for maintaining and cleaning that tricky flat top stove... You get my point. I'm pretty sure the big box stores aren't doing something like that...
5. Use a work injury as an opportunity to improve safety
Consider having an injured worker review safety materials, watch safety videos for your industry, or even conduct a "tool box talk" that will help prevent future injuries. When the message is coming from an injured worker, it carries greater weight. This shouldn't be punitive, but it should be viewed as an opportunity to increase safety culture, to learn from a negative event, and to accommodate restrictions.
If you don't have job descriptions (tisk! tisk!) then think about the less physically demanding elements of each position within your company. Make a list of these tasks. Ask other managers or supervisors if they have any "extra" work that needs to be done. Most people have a name for this type of list...we'll call it the never-ending, ever-expanding to-do list. Sure, re-organizing the toolboxes on the trucks would help, but who has the time? Answer: Your injured employee! Yes, having well-stocked first aid kits in every vehicle would be a nicety, but who has the time? Answer: Your injured employee! Bonus tip: Keep this list in the same place you keep your WC insurance information -- there's no need to reinvent the wheel the next time you experience a lost time claim.
2. Ask the injured worker
It is astonishing how many employers don't involve the injured worker in the RTW conversation. I bet there are at least 10 things that you do, weekly, if not daily, that fall into the "other duties as assigned" category of your job description. Most likely, your boss doesn't even realize they're being done, but would sure notice if they weren't. The point is, the injured worker knows their job better than anyone else and if asked, they could probably identify at least a handful of things they could do. Offer a bit of cross-training and voila! That brings us to our next tip...
3. Offer a few hours of cross-training
The payoff for this tip can be extensive. There's nothing more frustrating than having one of your team members taken out of work when you need them. Consider any type of cross-training opportunities. Could they learn to answer the phones? Make follow up customer satisfaction calls? Could the injured worker learn to write estimates or coordinate deliveries? Even if it takes 10 hours to train someone, it could yield weeks of valuable, meaningful, productive modified duty. This could also free up some of your other team members to get to more pressing issues.
4. Add value to your organization with RTW
What if you could use a challenging situation (such as a WC claim) to increase sales or customer satisfaction? An example of this involves an appliance retailer. The injured worker couldn't deliver appliances, but knew how to operate them. Today's appliances involve many technological advances, buttons, self-cleaning, filters, etc. I, up until a few months ago, didn't know my microwave had a "potato" button. Apparently my mother-in-law didn't either. I was so excited to discover this feature, but wished that someone had shown me sooner! So, why not have the injured worker do a new customer orientation, demonstrating all of the functions of the appliance, best practices for maintaining and cleaning that tricky flat top stove... You get my point. I'm pretty sure the big box stores aren't doing something like that...
5. Use a work injury as an opportunity to improve safety
Consider having an injured worker review safety materials, watch safety videos for your industry, or even conduct a "tool box talk" that will help prevent future injuries. When the message is coming from an injured worker, it carries greater weight. This shouldn't be punitive, but it should be viewed as an opportunity to increase safety culture, to learn from a negative event, and to accommodate restrictions.
Friday, July 19, 2013
What employers need to know about DE House Bill 175
On June 27, 2013, DE Governor Jack Markell signed House Bill 175 into law, amending Titles 18 and 19 of the DE code.
Employers and insurance carriers have an increased responsibility to ensure they are communicating available modified duties to the injured worker's physician. While the Employer's Report of Available Modified duty is not a new form, the recent changes now provide an incentive for employers to make sure these forms are being sent for each claim where temporary total disability (TTD) benefits are being paid under an Agreement As To Compensation-- an employer's eligibility for a Safety Credit requires that the they are compliant with these "back to work" procedures. According to the bill, as of September 1, 2013, safety inspections will now include a review of the employer's compliance with these procedures, dating back to July 1, 2013. Please review 2379(4) regarding the workplace safety credit changes.
According to 2322E.(d) of the Delaware Code, employers should provide their injured workers' physician with a completed Employer's Modified Duty Availability Report within 14 days in addition to their insurance carrier. So, send a completed copy of this form to the doctor and to your claim representative, and do so timely.
Having a modified duty job bank may assist employers in identifying modified duty options for their injured workers. Utilizing our modified duty task lists forms (found at eains.com/ecovery under the ecovery Library) may be a good first step in coming up with modified duty ideas.
Place a completed copy of the Employer's Modified Duty Availability Report form in the injured worker's WC claim file for your safety credit inspection. Consider dating when it was sent and to whom, or include a copy of a cover letter if you use one. According to the code, the workplace safety credit inspections will review up to three years' worth of history.
Nothing in this post is to be construed as legal advice or risk management advice. If you have specific questions regarding these changes, please contact your counsel or the Office of Workers' Compensation, or the Insurance Department's Consumer Services agency at 302-674-7300.
Employers and insurance carriers have an increased responsibility to ensure they are communicating available modified duties to the injured worker's physician. While the Employer's Report of Available Modified duty is not a new form, the recent changes now provide an incentive for employers to make sure these forms are being sent for each claim where temporary total disability (TTD) benefits are being paid under an Agreement As To Compensation-- an employer's eligibility for a Safety Credit requires that the they are compliant with these "back to work" procedures. According to the bill, as of September 1, 2013, safety inspections will now include a review of the employer's compliance with these procedures, dating back to July 1, 2013. Please review 2379(4) regarding the workplace safety credit changes.
According to 2322E.(d) of the Delaware Code, employers should provide their injured workers' physician with a completed Employer's Modified Duty Availability Report within 14 days in addition to their insurance carrier. So, send a completed copy of this form to the doctor and to your claim representative, and do so timely.
Having a modified duty job bank may assist employers in identifying modified duty options for their injured workers. Utilizing our modified duty task lists forms (found at eains.com/ecovery under the ecovery Library) may be a good first step in coming up with modified duty ideas.
Place a completed copy of the Employer's Modified Duty Availability Report form in the injured worker's WC claim file for your safety credit inspection. Consider dating when it was sent and to whom, or include a copy of a cover letter if you use one. According to the code, the workplace safety credit inspections will review up to three years' worth of history.
Nothing in this post is to be construed as legal advice or risk management advice. If you have specific questions regarding these changes, please contact your counsel or the Office of Workers' Compensation, or the Insurance Department's Consumer Services agency at 302-674-7300.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
RTW: Everybody’s doing it
…or at least for the majority of cases.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nearly "60% of the most severe cases in private industry include at least some days of job transfer or restricted work, with the remainder resulting exclusively in days away from work." (2013, p. 31). So what's the big deal? Well, in 1970, less than 5% of severe cases involved job transfer. We've come a long way, baby.
In 1985, only 8.6% of all lost-workday cases involved restricted work (2013, p. 32). In 2001, this number rose to 39.9% (2013, p.32). That is good news! BLS classifies restricted work cases as cases where the injured worker returns to work with restrictions, without losing time from work. In other words, injured workers return to modified duty without losing more than a day of work.
Does business size matter?
According to the BLS: somewhat. Their research has found that establishments increased in size, the proportion of restricted work days also increased, measured at years 1985, 2001, and 2009, until employer size reaches about 1,000 or more employees where it levels out and drops off slightly.
While peer pressure is typically not a good basis for doing something, particularly when it involves important business decisions and employees, it's clearly not just us who believe RTW is beneficial.
Exciting news!
Well, I find it exciting. In their future surveys, the BLS plans to capture more worker characteristics such as:
For more information, you can access the original article here, or visit www.bls.gov
Reference:
Ruser, J. W. & Wiatrowski, W. J. (2013). Restricted work due to workplace injuries: a historical perspective. Monthly Labor Review, 136(3), 31-43.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nearly "60% of the most severe cases in private industry include at least some days of job transfer or restricted work, with the remainder resulting exclusively in days away from work." (2013, p. 31). So what's the big deal? Well, in 1970, less than 5% of severe cases involved job transfer. We've come a long way, baby.
In 1985, only 8.6% of all lost-workday cases involved restricted work (2013, p. 32). In 2001, this number rose to 39.9% (2013, p.32). That is good news! BLS classifies restricted work cases as cases where the injured worker returns to work with restrictions, without losing time from work. In other words, injured workers return to modified duty without losing more than a day of work.
Does business size matter?
According to the BLS: somewhat. Their research has found that establishments increased in size, the proportion of restricted work days also increased, measured at years 1985, 2001, and 2009, until employer size reaches about 1,000 or more employees where it levels out and drops off slightly.
While peer pressure is typically not a good basis for doing something, particularly when it involves important business decisions and employees, it's clearly not just us who believe RTW is beneficial.
Exciting news!
Well, I find it exciting. In their future surveys, the BLS plans to capture more worker characteristics such as:
- Occupation
- Age
- Race or ethnic origin
- Gender
- Event or exposure leading to injury or illness
- Nature of injury or illness
- Part of body affected
- Source of injury
- Number of days of job transfer or restricted work
- Number of days away from work
- Length of service with employer
- Day and time of event or exposure
- Amount of time on shift when event or exposure occurred
For more information, you can access the original article here, or visit www.bls.gov
Reference:
Ruser, J. W. & Wiatrowski, W. J. (2013). Restricted work due to workplace injuries: a historical perspective. Monthly Labor Review, 136(3), 31-43.
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