July 02, 2019 / Beth Burry – AVP, clinical ops, Sedgwick field case management and return to work
As every manager knows, job descriptions are a necessary tool to help match the most appropriate and qualified candidates to job postings, while weeding out ‘unqualified’ candidates. This means many job descriptions are written to exclude candidates in the application process and are not very useful for determining what the actual, functional components of a job are or when an injured worker can return to work.
Functional job descriptions are a crucial piece of an organization’s return to work program. Despite their usefulness for workers’ compensation, most employers either don’t have functional job descriptions or, if they do, they aren’t updated or easily accessed by claims examiners, return to work specialists and nurse case managers. This can lead to higher costs for employers as their injured employees stay out of work longer than necessary.
