You, the treating physician and, in some cases, your company doctor determine if the employee can perform the job’s pre-injury essential functions with or without reasonable accommodations. Make sure that the medical authorities understand the job’s essential functions and the extent to which any necessary accommodations can reasonably be made. Involve your company physician when privacy concerns require detailed consideration of the employee’s condition and recovery.

The consultation will result in one of four outcomes:

• The employee returns to regular, pre-injury duties without change in duties or conditions of employment — “regular work.”
• The employee returns to regular, pre-injury duties as modified to accommodate their disability — a “modified position.”
• The employee returns to a different position for which they are qualified within the limitations of the disability — an “alternative position.”
• The employee is declared unable to return to a position within the company and is eligible for retraining benefits (Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit Voucher).

When you receive notice of the employee’s permanent and stationary status, take the following steps:

1. Immediately contact the employee, the treating physician or the Qualified Medical Evaluator to review any identified limitations. There is a form for exactly this purpose, the Physicians Return to Work and Voucher Report (DWC Form 10133.36). Ask for a copy of this form if you don’t have it, or ask your claims administrator to have the doctor complete and return the form if not already done.
2. Determine whether the pre-injury job can be reasonably modified to accommodate the medical limitations.
3. Alternatively, identify any other available alternate jobs that the employee could perform within those limitations.
4. Discuss these modified or alternate jobs with:
• Your employee.
• The treating physician.
• Your organization physician.
• Your claims supervisor.
5. Document your efforts. Keep meeting notes. Also, keep copies of job postings, job descriptions under consideration and written proposals and responses that were made during the meetings. Failure to follow company rules and policies in deciding whether to return an injured worker to work is prima fascie evidence of a 132a violation.1

• This documentation helps you defend any discrimination claim made under Labor Code section 132a or disability discrimination claims under either the ADA or FEHA.

6. Decide if you will offer the employee a modified or alternative position. Finalize the position’s details.
7. Coordinate with your insurer or third-party administrator, who then documents and makes the formal offer, as required by law.

There is a time limit of 60 days from P&S status for you to make an offer of modified or alternate work. The employee can take 30 days to accept or reject your offer. If the employee fails to respond within that period or rejects the offer, you probably aren’t required to reinstate the employee and you may also be eligible for a discount in the indemnity benefits paid to the injured worker (the discount applies only to injuries between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2012).2

Additionally, a valid offer of modified or alternate work, regardless of whether the employee accepted the offer, will relieve you of the obligation to provide a supplemental job displacement voucher. For more information, see Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits.

1. Eshan Alnmiri v. Southwest Airlines, ADJ7437447, ADJ7437413 (07/31/2019)