Last October, while conducting a webinar on Creating an Injury Prevention and Management Program That Works, I asked the attendees three questions:
- Do you conduct pre-hire fit for duty exams? More than two in three attendees either didn’t spend the time or money on these exams, weren’t aware that they were available, or didn’t know how to conduct them. For nine straight years I trained Workers Comp brokers on how to help clients reduce their claims by doing these exams. The bottom line: You don’t want to hire a future Comp claim. For more information, read more the report: Creating an Injury Prevention and Management Program that Works.
- Have you ever calculated the total cost of your Workers Comp claims? Only one in three attendees have done so. For every dollar paid in claims, there’s at least another dollar of bottom-line impact in reduced productivity, lost customer satisfaction, the cost of replacing an employee, etc. Bear in mind that insurance companies have little incentive in preventing or managing Comp claims, especially when the interest rate on your modifier is in the double digits. In fact, it’s the most expensive money your company will ever borrow
- Do you have a formal return-to-work program? Once again, less than half of the attendees did so, even though these plans make eminent sense. The program should acknowledge concerns and fears by both employee and supervisors. Many Comp claims take on a life of their own because managers ignore injured employees as “damaged goods,” rather than trying to nurture them back to work – and then wonder why some of them malinger on claims.
I encourage you to watch the webinar or read this report, and then follow up with us if you have any questions.
