Compensation reform responses mask the human face of return to work

Proposed reforms to the Accident Compensation Act have been criticised by most stakeholder groups, however Dr Mary Wyatt, CEO of Return to Work Matters — an online resource and network for ‘return to work’ professionals — believes there is an opportunity to reduce compensation costs and improve health outcomes by focusing on the human face of return to work.

In collaboration with the RTWMatters professional network, Dr Wyatt is drafting a series of ‘Principles for Return to Work’ and will be calling on the state government to implement the Hanks Review recommendation 19 as a matter of urgency.

In the three weeks since the Victorian government announced its $90 million reform package for injured Victorian workers and its response to the Hanks Review of the Accident Compensation Act, the responses from stakeholder groups have been mostly negative.

However, very little comment has been made on the government-supported ‘recommendation 19’, which advised that: “The Accident Compensation Act should include a set of principles that apply to return to work. The principles would help guide employers, injured workers, and other stakeholders … and foster the type of relationships between the various parties that is essential to a successful return to work process.”

Dr Wyatt believes that stakeholder groups are failing to capitalise on the opportunities presented by the proposed reforms, stating: “Cutting red tape and streamlining legislation are important, but the heart and soul of return to work are the people involved.

“Research and experts have been saying for some time that the quality of the relationships in the return to work process affects the outcome. This is our opportunity to take advantage of that knowledge and make a real difference in health outcomes and compensation costs.”

The Principles for Return to Work will be forwarded to the Victorian Minister for Finance, WorkCover and the TAC, Tim Holding.