Expert fears health will be the loser in workers comp harmonisation

One of four experts invited to address Safe Work Australia’s recent workers comp harmonisation forum, Occupational Physician and Chair of Resworks Dr Mary Wyatt told attendees that the vast amounts of time, energy and resources that legislative harmonisation will demand of Australia’s 11 workers compensation jurisdictions would be better focused on “a national project to develop a standard set of tools and techniques to support and enable return to work”.

Dr Wyatt believes that workers comp harmonisation, as it has been discussed, won’t improve health or return-to-work outcomes, claiming that, while harmonisation will benefit Australia’s multijurisdictional employers, the majority of Australian businesses and workers have little to gain from the process as currently proposed.

“Rather than advocating more tinkering with the rules, our focus should be on improving return-to-work performance and the health of employees within workers comp systems,” Dr Wyatt said. “This is also the best way to help workplaces reduce costs and improve productivity, and the best way to reduce the cost burden on the community.”

Dr Wyatt, a vocal advocate for increased transparency in data relating to workers compensation, noted Australia’s poor track record in relation to the health outcomes of compensation systems: “Employees with a compensable condition have poorer outcomes than those who have the same condition in a non compensation situation. An individual not back at work after six months has a relatively poor chance of ever returning to work.

“The training, resources and tools available to employees, employers and people who work in the field are limited and complex cases are very hard to manage.

“There is an opportunity for SafeWork Australia to focus on an unresolved problem that is common to all authorities - that of returning people to health and activity as quickly as possible.

“We need to get our priorities straight. We should not be rearranging the lounge suite while there is mildew growing up the walls.”