If a company has a Stay-At-Work program in place before an injury takes place, the employee sees the company doctor or a designated healthcare clinic immediately following the injury. The physician knows in advance that there is a Stay-at-Work program in place and will provide a functional physical capacity analysis for the injured employee. The idea is for the employee to return to work in a temporary position that meets the physical limitations criteria requested by the physician. Depending on the injury, this approach can result in no lost time from work.

Eventually, the employee returns to full capacity. This desired outcome benefits the employee who has a sustained income during the injury period. It benefits the employer with an improved experience modifier, which is the adjustment of annual premium based on previous loss experience (other work-site injuries).

An employee who returns to work with full capacity improves the employer's experience modification factor over time. A factor that drops below the average for the employer's industry delivers a competitive edge to capture new business. Additionally, there is the potential to reduce employee turnover because the workforce knows the employer has their best interests (both financial and medical) in mind, which creates trust and loyalty between the parties.

Despite the obvious benefits, not everyone embraces the Stay-at-Work concept. Even when Workers' Compensation experience modification factors are 25 or 50 percent above the norm for their industry classification, some employers balk. They might oppose having employees working at less than a 100 percent capacity, or they don't have light or modified duty jobs to offer. Employers of unionized businesses are sometimes concerned about labor push back.

If an employer offers a safe place to work, but still has Workers' Compensation premiums averaging 25 or 50 percent higher than competitors, it is time to consider a new approach. There are light-duty jobs in most companies that an injured employee can perform. One can assume that the employee would rather work and earn a full paycheck than sit at home collecting 70 percent of his average weekly wage. The company is paying the wages anyway due to the statutory Workers' Compensation insurance policy, which is another reason why a Stay-at-Work program makes sense.

The actual cost for medical and lost wages expenses on a Workers' Compensation claim only represent a fraction of the true cost to the employer for a work-related injury. For instance, there is significant expense related to investigating a claim, completing and filing paperwork, complying with OSHA and state Department of Labor work safety and injury rules, and looking for a replacement worker if the injured employee does not come back to work. OSHA has estimated that the indirect costs of a work-related injury claim are somewhere between three to 10 times the direct cost of a Workers' Compensation claim.

Unions tend to embrace Stay-at-Work programs because it helps employees return to full duties more quickly, the injured employee does not experience a drop in take-home pay, and working employees are better able to stay connected to their co-workers and companies, helping to reduce the indirect costs of work-related injuries for employers.

It is important to avoid making assumptions about what any employee with an injury, illness or disability can do. In many industries, flexible work arrangements, accessible technology and office automation have increased the capabilities of employees and made it easier for them to do their jobs in alternative ways.

Free resources are available to facilitate a Stay-at-Work or Return-to-Work strategy. One place to start is to read the Department of Labor's Return-to-Work Toolkit. The Wage and Hourly Division Office of Disability Employment Policy also publishes a fact sheet with information on Stay-at-Work, Return-to-Work, and the Family and Medical Leave Act.

For employers with significant Workers' Compensation expenses, a Stay-at-Work program offers a way to control costs while building a tighter bond with employees. It's worth considering.