Know Your Legal Boundaries for Return-to-Work Employees

Last week we hosted our monthly webinar and were grateful to be joined by Simon Kent from Kent Employment Law. Simon and Derek Sienko answered viewers’ questions about the legal struggles of bringing employees back to work after an injury or illness. We had a great discussion and were able to hear from both the employer’s and the employee’s perspective.

The questions provided by participants touched on a variety of workplace issues that many companies have in common. Some of the topics discussed included:

• Requesting information from the employee’s doctor
• Handling employees suspected of malingering
• Protecting your company against a human rights complaint
• Addressing substance use issues at work

Both Simon and Derek noted that employers sometimes do not have all the information necessary to make decisions that will protect them legally.  “Many of these cases are very fact driven and a one-size-fits-all approach does not work for every employee’s circumstance,” said Simon.  It is important for employers to have adequate in-house resources or to seek outside help when they are navigating complex disability claims to protect themselves from potential lawsuits. Derek provided that “When you have a formal return-to-work/disability management program set up you protect yourself from the inevitable occurrence of injury or illness and ensure more successful employee returns down the road”.

We received very positive feedback from viewers following the webinar. One participant said that the webinar was “very engaging and informative for both employers and human resource professionals”.

We look forward to our next webinar on February 23rd where we will be joined by Dr. Merv Gilbert to discuss psychologically healthy workplaces. Register for this webinar here.

If you would like to watch the recording of “Webinar 2: Employment Law” please email drg@diversifiedrehab.ca.