“The premise of return to work is that people are afforded the opportunity to return to work where it’s appropriate and reasonable, and the employers are being given every opportunity to be able to do that.”
Those were the words of Alasdair Grant (pictured) when Insurance Business caught up with the Recovery Partners client relations general manager about workers’ compensation and workplace rehabilitation in Australia in connection with COVID-19.
Amid an ever-evolving situation, Grant believes the country has been “very lucky” in how Australian governments and scheme regulators are performing remarkably well when it comes to educating and informing employers in terms of safely bringing staff back to work.
The crisis-related adaptation has been constant but, in the GM’s view, a dynamic and flexible approach is proving to be effective in enabling meaningful return-to-work opportunities despite the highly challenging circumstances surrounding coronavirus restrictions.
Grant told Insurance Business: “We have every confidence that that’s the priority – that everyone is afforded the chance to return to work if and when able, whether that be a work-from-home environment or within a somewhat altered arrangement.”
Part of Recovery Partners’ remit, he said, is ensuring that companies are doing the above in the safest and most sustainable way possible.
“That means a person doesn’t have to then have a subsequent challenge of either further injury or a delayed return to work,” explained Grant. “I think, honestly, it worked quite well. If I look at our return-to-work rates across 2020, they ultimately didn’t shift significantly at all.”
Read more: What will flexible work look like in 2021?
The result, according to the general manager, is that they can remain confident that clients are being provided the health benefits of good work and that the potential of broader public health impacts is being minimised.
He conceded that there might have been a slight decline in organisations’ willingness to invite new people into the workspace but stressed that, in the grand scheme of things, the reduction wouldn’t have been significant.
Grant noted: “We’re talking less than a 10% change, so [there’s] a good healthy appetite. And we’ve seen [employers] continue to make opportunities for people to return and continue to encourage and incentivise employees to return.
“So I fully expect that will continue to be what’s available in 2021. I think the [workers’ compensation] schemes have done a really great job in maintaining flexibility. Ultimately, the schemes are designed to support workers going back to work, so with that being the primary principle they’ll continue to deliver upon that.”
As for workplace rehabilitation, the Recovery Partners executive highlighted the importance of continuing to do a better job of understanding the psychosocial implications of injuries as well as the intrinsic value of work.
Grant said the continuation of people coming in or going out of physical workplaces on account of COVID-19 restrictions ultimately changes the psychological demands on individuals in any given working capacity, and so it’s crucial to be well-abreast of anything that could cause complications for workers.
“We continue to need to evolve practices and ensure that there is enough capability and capacity within our group and the broader industry that can support psychological injury management,” he asserted, “and we can continue to help employers in understanding psychosocial hazards that exist within workplaces in their varying forms.”
At the top of the agenda, according to the GM, is making sure there’s a good healthy amount of education and expertise that will enable them to respond to different challenges for people if and when they occur.
