Managing Employee Absence and Disability at the Workplace

Author: The Standard
Published: 2011/12/02 - Updated: 2026/02/02
Publication Type: Announcement
Category Topic: Insurance - Related Publications

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates

Synopsis: This white paper examines practical workplace strategies that help employers reduce the financial and operational impact of employee absences related to disability. Published by Standard Insurance Company, the document draws on real-world program data showing nearly $1.7 million in employer savings through integrated absence management. The information proves valuable to HR professionals, business owners, and disability advocates because it combines clinical expertise with measurable outcomes, offering concrete methods for implementing transitional return-to-work programs, nurse case management, and on-site medical services. People with disabilities benefit from understanding these frameworks, as they directly influence workplace accommodations and support systems that facilitate continued employment during recovery periods - Disabled World (DW).

Introduction

Employee Absence and Disability Productivity Management

Standard Insurance Company ("The Standard") has announced the release of a white paper, titled The Future of Absence and Disability Management, that addresses three major employee absence and productivity challenges faced by employers. Employers will learn how to address and solve these issues by integrating three key practices that change the way they manage absence and disability in the workplace.

Disability Insurance (DI), or disability income insurance, is a form of insurance that insures the beneficiary's earned income against the risk that a disability will make working uncomfortable (as with psychological disorders), painful (as with back pain), or impossible (as with coma). It includes paid sick leave, short-term disability benefits, and long-term disability benefits.

Main Content

The three employer challenges the white paper addresses are:

Managing different types of employee absence and disability.
Establishing a return to work (RTW) program following short- and long-term disability.
Dealing with the lack of resources available to improve employee health and productivity.

"Though employers have used individual methods to address each of these challenges, uniting three key practices into one cohesive approach is the answer," said Michael Klachefsky, National Practice Leader, Workplace Possibilities for The Standard and author of the white paper. "The Workplace Possibilities program proactively brings these practices together to significantly reduce the duration, cost and impact of employee absence and disability."

The three practices that function together in the health and productivity management model include:

1) Transitional RTW - This system makes temporary job accommodations so that employees can get back to work while still recovering from an injury or illness.
2) Nurse case management "Employers have found success in having a nurse with RTW and adjudication experience manage absence and disability(1).
3) On-site providers - Employers are starting to see the value of having medical/pharmacological services available to their employees at the workplace.

Through The Standard's holistic system, Workplace Possibilities helps reduce the average duration of, and hard-dollar costs associated with, short-term disability. In 2010, Workplace Possibilities saved employers participating in the program close to $1.7 million (The Standard internal data, 2011).

Workplace Possibilities Program

The Workplace Possibilities program is a unique, proactive approach to helping employers prevent and manage employee absence and disability. An on-site consultant helps to connect employees with their health management programs and identifies opportunities to keep at-risk employees on the job or return to work faster.

The program delivers rapid and measurable reductions in absence- and disability-related costs while also improving the efficiency of the HR team and increasing employee satisfaction.

(1) The Impact of Employer Health and Productivity Management Practices, Integrated Benefits Institute (July 2010).

Insights, Analysis, and Developments

Editorial Note: The shift toward integrated absence and disability management represents more than cost containment - it signals a fundamental reimagining of how workplaces support employees through health challenges. When organizations move beyond fragmented approaches and instead unite transitional work programs, clinical case management, and accessible on-site care, they create environments where recovery and productivity coexist rather than compete. The documented success of these methods suggests that the traditional binary of "able to work" or "unable to work" gives way to a more nuanced reality: with the right structures in place, many employees can contribute meaningfully even while healing. This evolution benefits everyone - employers gain retained talent and reduced costs, while employees maintain income, dignity, and professional continuity during what might otherwise be devastating interruptions to their careers - Disabled World (DW).

Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by The Standard and published on 2011/12/02, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.