Return to Work (RTW) — Alberta WCB
Return to work (RTW) is the process of helping an injured worker return to productive employment as early and safely as possible after a workplace injury. Alberta employers have a legal obligation to offer suitable modified work to injured workers, and WCB-Alberta supports RTW as a key part of the claims management process.
Getting an injured worker back to work safely — even in a modified capacity — is better for the worker, better for the employer, and better for the WCB claims file. Research consistently shows that workers who return to modified duties recover faster than those who stay home. Alberta OHS and WCB-Alberta both support early and safe return to work.
Employer obligations for RTW
Alberta employers have a duty to accommodate injured workers by offering suitable modified work — work that is within the worker's physical restrictions as determined by their treating physician. The employer must make a genuine effort to find suitable work before WCB-Alberta will consider the worker fully unable to work.
Suitable modified work does not have to be the worker's pre-injury job. It can be a different task, reduced hours, or a different location — as long as it is within the worker's restrictions and is productive work.
RTW and WCB claims costs
The duration of a WCB claim is one of the biggest drivers of claims costs. Every day a worker is off work on a WCB claim adds to the total cost of the claim — and to the employer's experience rating. A successful RTW program that gets workers back to modified duties quickly can significantly reduce the total cost of a claim.
Employers who have a formal RTW program and a track record of offering modified duties consistently get better outcomes on WCB claims than employers who handle each claim ad hoc.
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