Return to Work Program

 

Introduction

At Hireup, the safety and wellbeing of our community is important to us. We have a dedicated Health, Safety and Wellbeing team who focus on building systems that are effective at preventing incidents, issues and injuries. While we work hard to ensure that incidents are prevented, we also understand that sometimes things don't go to plan. After employees are injured or become ill while working for Hireup, we are committed to providing support to employees while they recover at work. 

This Return To Work program will be reviewed at least every two years to ensure it remains current in consultation with employees and any unions representing them. 

The Return to Work program can be accessed on Happeo (support office employees) and Help Centre (Support Workers). Training for the Return to Work program will be delivered via the Hireup Academy, a platform for learning, career development and resources for Hireup employees. 

 

Leadership and commitment

Hireup is committed to the wellbeing and rehabilitation of all employees who become ill or have been injured while working for Hireup. Hireup’s Return to Work Program should be read in conjunction with the Health & Safety Policy, Injury Management & Recovery at Work Guide and Injury Management Workflow and Service Standards (internal documents). This video from Hireup’s co-founder, Jordan O'Reilly explains Hireup's commitment to supporting recovery and return to work from a workplace injury.

All Hireup employees are covered by workers compensation insurance and Hireup’s Health Safety & Wellbeing team are here to support injured employees to recover while working. Hireup allocates resources to develop, manage and monitor our safety management system to ensure the health and safety of employees, so far as is “reasonably practicable” as per the WHS Act 2011 and Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017.

Following a workplace injury or illness, the WHS Advisor in consultation with the Injury Management Advisor and the injured employee, will conduct an investigation to identify system gaps for opportunities of improvement.

Hireup are committed to fostering a positive culture around return to work. We do this through:

• Making it easy to report an illness or injury,
• Responding quickly and genuinely to all hazard, incident and injury reports
• Offering a free and confidential Employee Assistance Program
• Regularly reporting on injury and incident trends as well as return to work performance to our Executive Leadership Team and Board.

Through open communication with our employees, health and safety is promoted via: 

• The Support Worker Hub
• Monthly newsletters, 
• Community Advisory Group,
• Happeo (for our support office employees) 
• Injured at work posters throughout our Melbourne and Sydney work spaces (for our support office employees)

We promote hazard awareness through our “Stop, Think, Act” Risk assessment tool that is provided by our training and available via our Support Worker Hub. The continuous promotion of good work and recovering at work is detailed in our “Injury Management and Recovery at Work Guide for Ill and Injured Employees”.

 

Workplace arrangements

Hireup’s Injury Management Advisors are part of the Health Safety & Wellbeing team. Contact information and reporting information for the team are available on Happeo (support office employees) and Help Centre (support worker employees).

 

 

The Injury Management Advisors fulfil the role of the Return to Work Coordinator and are responsible for enacting the Return to Work program following a workplace illness or injury. The Injury Management Advisor duties include: 

• Compiling the initial notification information 
• Coordinating the worker’s recovery at work, including identifying suitable work opportunities 
• Preparing, monitoring and reviewing a Recovery at Work plan (in consultation with key parties) that documents the worker’s capacity and the duties available 
• Liaising with external stakeholders, such as the nominated treating doctor, insurer, treatment providers, union and workplace rehabilitation provider
• Implementing the Return To Work program 
• Supporting the redeployment of employees (internally or externally) into suitable work when they cannot return to their pre-injury duties 
• Keeping injury and recover at work statistics 
• Keeping confidential case notes and records in line with laws and guidelines 
• Promoting the health benefits of good work to the workforce 
• Contributing to the improvement of relevant policies and systems.

Hireup’s Injury Management Advisors hold the required knowledge and understanding of the obligations and rights of injured employees, rehabilitation providers, treating medical professionals and Insurance agents in respect of injury management and Return To Work Plans. They endeavour to engage in culturally safe and inclusive communications with all parties at all times.

 

Hireup’s Injury Management Advisors do not make decisions on claims liability or funding for treatment as this is the insurer’s responsibility.

 

Hireup’s preferred Rehabilitation Provider is Recovery Partners. Alternatively, our injured employees may nominate their own preferred rehabilitation provider. Our Injury Management Advisors will discuss a worker's opportunity to choose their rehabilitation provider, however an employee may raise this at any time during their recovery, either via phone or email. 

 

Hireup will cooperate with rehabilitation providers by continuous open communication conducted via call, emails and scheduled meetings. Hireup will provide information about our workplace and the type of work conducted so they understand the unique needs of our business. Rehabilitation consultants have reasonable access to injured employees and their work locations. For Support Workers, prior client consent needs to be obtained before a worksite visit can commence. The assigned Injury Management Advisor will reach out to the Client, the Client’s Relationship Manager (if applicable) or Account Manager to discuss the context and purpose for the worksite visit. The Rehabilitation Provider will then coordinate a worksite visit with the injured employee and Client present. For support office employees, the assigned Injury Management Advisor is to contact the relevant team lead and advise of the visit. 

 

Consultation with our community is embedded in our ways of working in line with our obligations under the NDIS Practice Standards and our PCBU duties under the Work Health & Safety Act 2011. With respect to consultation with our employees and any relevant unions, there are a range of mechanisms in which this is conducted including but not limited to:

• Introductory calls for Support Workers after they complete their first booking with Hireup
• Hireup’s Community Advisory Group which is comprised of Support Workers,  Clients and Support Office employees who meet monthly to discuss a range of matters including health and safety
• Hireup’s Support Worker WHS Working Group which consists of 12-15 Support Workers from across Australia who meet with support office employees bi-monthly to raise and discuss safety matters as well as provide advice to Hireup on a range of health and safety matters
• Monthly Support Worker electronic newsletters which contain health and safety messages and updates   
• Periodic Support Worker online workshops which cover topics like manual handling, working safely and infection control 

 

Rights and Obligations

The rights and obligations for employees, Hireup, and relevant support teams are detailed in Injury Management and Recovery at Work Guide for Ill and Injured Workers. This is provided to all employees at the time of an incident being reported. 

 

After an incident

An injured employee must report the injury to Hireup as soon as possible. 

To report an incident, please complete the online incident report form (for Support workers), or via Employment Hero (for Support Office). Support Workers will be prompted to report an incident or injury that has occurred on a booking when submitting their hours through the app or platform. 

Up to date Support Worker safety information, including incident reporting and first aid procedure can be found on the Hireup Help Centre. First Aid training is to be updated every three years (in line with certification expiry)  First aid training is tracked for Support Workers through the Hireup Platform, and via the P&C team for first aid officers in our support offices. 

 All support workers joining Hireup to provide support must have a current First Aid certification. Support Workers can obtain a discount when enrolling for First Aid Certification through CBD College using discount code: HIREDISC89.

Hireup will accept First Aid certificates with the following course codes:

• HLTAID011 Provide First Aid 
• HLTAID012 Provide First Aid in an Education and Care Setting 
• HLTAID013 Provide First Aid in a Remote or Isolated Site 
• HLTAID014 Provide Advanced First Aid 
• AHPRA registrations for Nursing and Paramedics

Support office safety information, including incident reporting and first aid kit locations,  first aid officers, and procedures can be found on Happeo.

All injuries reported will be recorded and maintained in Hireup’s Register of Injuries (Quickclaim) by the Health Safety & Wellbeing Team. Employees may obtain a copy of their injury report from the register at any time. Hireup’s procedures for notifying insurers and SafeWork regulators can be found in the (internal) Injury Management Workflow and Service Standards document. 

 

 

Support for employees 

Hireup’s Injury Management Workflow and Service Standards document outlines our processes to support injured employees including the Health Safety & Wellbeing team’s commitment to the following service standards:

• SERVICE STANDARD 1: The Health Safety & Wellbeing Team is committed to making contact with injured employees within 4 hours of the team being notified (supported by the Detection, Investigation & Response team out of office hours).
• SERVICE STANDARD 2: The Health Safety & Wellbeing team is committed to reporting all injuries to the relevant state insurer in line with the reporting timeframes and maintaining a register of injuries in Quickclaim.
• SERVICE STANDARD 3: The Health Safety & Wellbeing team is committed to reporting all serious injuries to the relevant WHS Regulator (SafeWork) in line with the reporting timeframes and maintaining a register of incidents.
• SERVICE STANDARD 4: The Health Safety & Wellbeing team are committed to developing, using and maintaining a signed record of Recovery at Work plans for every applicable injured worker and update with each certificate of capacity. The team will endeavour to have an Initial Recovery at Work plan signed by the worker and their nominated treating doctor.

The Hireup’s Injury Management & Recovery at Work Guide is the entire process of activities and procedures to achieve a timely, safe, and sustainable return to work for employees following a workplace illness or injury. The guide outlines information for managing workplace injuries and workers' compensation processes. Information regarding gaining an employee’s informed consent to share relevant information with the treating medical practitioners, insurance claim manager and Rehabilitation Provider (if applicable) to support a sustainable return to work is also included. The obligations of both Hireup and the employee and relevant parties is outlined .Information on wage compensation and weekly payment are also outlined. 

 

Recovery at work

Studies have shown that remaining at work is often the best way to recover from a workplace illness or injury. The key benefits include supporting a quicker recovery, it keeps employees connected to clients and colleagues, it supports a return to the other things employees enjoy, it boosts employee physical and mental health, and reduces the likelihood of long-term effects from the injury. 

 

Hireup will maintain positive communication with our employees and their support team during their recovery. This will be conducted through communication that is timely, accessible, inclusive, culturally safe and empowering. Hireup’s Injury Management Advisors will ensure that regular communication is maintained throughout your recovery. 

 

If you are unable to return to work, Hireup will offer you suitable duties. Completing these alternative duties is an important component in the recovery process while Hireup’s Injury Management Advisor will work to create a Recovery at Work Plan. This document will outline the gradual stages in the worker’s return to pre-injury duties. The goal of each stage will be to increase duties gradually, in line with guidance by their treating doctor, until the worker has made a full recovery. This plan will be monitored and reviewed regularly. The plan will be reviewed and signed off by the treating doctor and rehabilitation provider (if applicable). The Recovery at Work plan will be distributed to the employee, treating GP, and the insurer. In the event amendments are made to the plan, an updated copy will be distributed to all parties. Each plan will contain: the recovery at work goal, diagnosis, available duties, review dates. 

 

Hireup offers a range of available duties including home based duties which can be completed if employees are unable to perform their pre-injury role. These duties include, but are not limited to:

• Light support work including supervision, social support or providing transport where appropriate;
• Completing online training courses; 
• Reviewing and providing feedback on Hireup resources and training;
• Computer and phone based administration work;
• Training and mentoring other Support Workers; 
• Community engagement activities (on the phone/computer or face to face)
• If appropriate for the client, Support Workers may be able to complete buddy shifts with another Support Worker as their suitable duties

These duties will be discussed with the employee in the development of the plan. 

 

Whilst the goal will always be to return to pre-injury duties in the same role, there may be instances where this needs to be revised due to the nature of the injury, ongoing restrictions or changing requirements in the workplace. In these cases and where reasonably practical to do so, Hireup, in consultation with the employee, the insurer, treating doctor and rehabilitation team will explore alternative roles available within or outside of the Hireup business. Employees will be given assistance in seeking alternative employment by a Rehabilitation Provider. Hireup will work with the relevant insurer to ensure that the appropriate referral is made for alternative work arrangements. 

 

Hireup will work with employees to (where possible) have appointments for treatment outside of working hours. This will be conducted through conversations of when it is suitable for a worker to complete their suitable duties, and working together to reach an agreement on suitable hours.

 

Protections are in place for employees against dismissal because of a work related injury or illness. This is within the relevant legislated time frame after the employee's first date of incapacity for employment.

 

Dispute prevention and resolution

To the fullest extent permitted, Hireup will address all complaints in a confidential manner in line with Hireup’s Statement on Complaints and Privacy Policy.This includes disputes regarding injury management, suitable work, and recovery at work planning. Hireup will attempt to resolve all complaints within 21 working days of the complaint being made. Formal dispute pathways through the Workers Compensation System can also be located in Hireup’s Statement on Complaints.

 

Administration

Hireup is committed to maintaining confidentiality while supporting injured employees by:

• Obtaining the employee’s  informed consent to exchange information by the Authority to Release Medical Information form within the Injury Management and Recovery at Work Guide for Ill and Injured employees guide
• Establishing and maintaining a confidential file for each injured employee within in specialised injury management software platform (Quickclaim)
• Restricting access to the files within the Quickclaim and storing them securely