As you go through the process of recovering from your California workplace injury, the road to returning to work is assisted by a number of individuals. These are people who will help determine when you are able to go back to work. Some people want to return to work as quickly as possible. However, in the event you are not fully able to resume your ordinary duties, you may need to be assigned tasks you can handle.
The California Department of Industrial Relations identifies the people who will likely be involved in helping you return to work. They include your primary treating doctor and the claims administrator. Someone from your current workplace will also assist you, generally a superior such as a manager or a supervisor. Also, if you have hired an attorney, your legal counsel will also be in the mix.
These parties will help you determine when you can return to work and under what circumstances. Your doctor, for instance, should properly evaluate your recovery and have an understanding of the kind of work you can do in your current state. Your employer should also consider if you can perform the same duties you had before your injury and how to provide you with different, less burdensome tasks if you are not fully recovered.
Keeping all of these parties in the loop is important because breakdowns in communication may hamper your ability to go back to work. Your employer might offer you tasks that you cannot handle in your current state. It is possible your employer does not understand your current health condition. If your employer wants proof that you cannot handle a certain work duty, you should show documents from your doctor that detail your current work restrictions.
You might also disagree with your doctor about the kind of work you can take on. Once your doctor has assessed your ability to work, you have to decide whether to seek a medical evaluation from another doctor. You need to contact your attorney to state your disagreement, or if you have no attorney, you have to write a letter to the claims administrator about your disagreement. These actions must be taken within a certain time frame.
