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Results

You have a robust, effective and proven system and your managers are invested in injury management. You devote sufficient time and resources into injury management and you have an engaged workforce.

Next steps

1. Regularly review your system to ensure its currency and effectiveness.
2. Keep managers engaged in the process by regular recognition of their efforts.
3. Make sure the return to work coordinator is keeping up with his or her jobs and has enough time to do them effectively.

Results

You have a proven effective consultation process which is utilised throughout the business. You consult with your workers on a regular basis and include them in all decisions that may affect them.

Next steps

1. Regularly review your consultative mechanisms to ensure currency and effectiveness.
2. Make sure you continue to engage your workforce and adapt your system to any changes.
3. Periodically test (e.g. survey) your workplace to confirm that the workforce feels that they are consulted effectively.

Results

You probably do not have an adequate training program. In relation to injury management this can mean that your worker’s are unaware of your early return to work policy, their responsibilities to report injuries and disclose information or your expectations of behaviours.

In addition your line managers (supervisors) will most likely not be aware of the importance of their roles and consider that return to work and management of injuries is not their responsibility. This will invariably lead to lengthier periods of time off of work (for even relatively minor injuries) and can also create a general level of dissatisfaction amongst the workforce.

It will be difficult for you to enforce your business code of conduct or behavioural expectations if you do not provide adequate training for your staff which may mean your general work culture and climate will be negative.

Next steps

1. Perform a simple training needs analysis for your employees. This can be as simple as creating a spreadsheet that lists all of your business roles/tasks with a list of the skills required to perform the tasks. You should include a knowledge of your safety and injury management procedures in this. You could then consult with your employees to determine what skills and knowledge they have and cross reference this against your skill matrix. This will help you to understand the training gaps within the business which you can begin to address systematically. This method will ensure that all training is covered but just as importantly is relevant to your business.
2. Make sure that injury management/early return to work is part of your standard induction program.
3. Make sure that you keep training current. In the case of injury management you may wish to have injury management as an agenda item for team meetings or you may diarise regular updates to training as part of your training matrix (above).
4. It is important to keep records of what you have done. This will prevent double-ups of training and also will be a vital part of any disciplinary or SafeWork SA activity. It is also a legislative requirement.

Results

You have a good understanding of early intervention and injury management. Your system deals with most circumstances well but there may be a few aspects of your process that could be improved. This can be due to a lack of training or understanding by staff, limited or restricted resources or time or because of the structure and nature of your business.

Next steps

1. Consider your business structure and how it operates. Make sure that responsibility for early intervention and return to work is given to those that are in the best position to do it.
2. Train and educate all staff in the process and emphasise your commitment to injury management through provision of resources and training.
3. Make sure your process is transparent and workers are involved in their own return to work and claim.
4. Where it is practical to do so develop a relationship with a nearby clinic. Invite doctors to meet you and tour the worksite. This will assist in identification of duties and will reduce the instance of time lost due to doctors being unaware of what workers do.

Results

You have a successful and embedded early intervention and return to work system. You have an effective document control system in place. You set goals, targets and KPIs and regularly report on and review them. You have a formal system of internal audit and you properly analyse trends and performance. You maintain detailed records and utilise corrective action plans to address required activity.

Next steps

1. Regularly review your system to ensure its currency and effectiveness.
2. Regularly interrogate the system to ensure that what you want done is being done (i.e. are we doing what we say we will do and if not why not?).