Rehabilitation

Where prevention fails people suffering major injuries have only a one in six chance of getting back to work. According to the Health and Safety Executive, 27,000 people each year leave work forever because of a workplace injury or illness. They can exchange their jobs, their health and their wages for poverty and disability.

Simple measures could reduce the length of time workers are off sick and could reduce lost income and protect jobs. A survey of Swedish firms showed that job retention measures paid for themselves within one to two years.

TUC has called for a legal requirement for employers to have a rehabilitation policy framework in place.

Occupational health schemes can have a major effect in preventing ill health through work and in ensuring that people are able to return to work as early as possible. Unfortunately, The UK is failing to meet its minimum legal duty under the European-wide health and safety Framework Directive. This binding law requires that all workers have access to preventive occupational health services.

Workers have some job protection during recovery from illness or injury, for example, as long as an unforeseen event hasn't rendered "all further employment permanently impossible" an employer cannot fairly dismiss a sick worker.

However, a TUC survey found UK workers have the unhealthy habit of working when sick, a habit known as "presenteeism" brought on by an undue pressure to work when sick, which can have the consequence of lowering productivity and increasing sickness levels.

Links

TUC guide - How to stop the £14 billion workplace injury drain

TUC rehabilitation guide:

Hazards rehabilitation web pages:

Hazards sickness absence pages:

CAW Return to work checklist - Health, Safety and Environment Newsletter May/June 2002