Back injuries are one of the most common types of injuries in the workplace. It’s hard to recover from such injuries even after getting quality medical treatment and advice. If you hope to return to work after a back injury and are curious about how back injuries impact the return-to-work process, read on. Here’s the crux of it.

The Challenges

There are many challenges an individual must face after a back injury. Some complications that might make the return to work more challenging are:

• Constant pain
• Problems in lifting heavy items.
• Difficulty sitting for a long time, climbing, twisting, and bending over.
• Numbness in the back and the legs.

The Procedure

If you have a workplace-associated injury, the doctor will likely check your ability to do the work after each appointment and highlight the restrictions you have to follow and the precautions you need to take to avoid worsening the situation.

It would help if you discussed return-to-work plans with your doctor so that they can enlighten you on the problems you might face and how to fix them without panicking.

Consider Light Duty

If the back injury prevents you from returning to work full-time, you must consider taking up light duty. As the name suggests, your responsibilities would be fewer than regular. This will likely be a temporary solution.

Sometimes, an employer will tell you the job is light duty, but it might turn out to be more complicated than that. In such cases, you can consider talking to the employer or taking legal action if the situation doesn’t improve.

If you are okay with performing light duties but think the pay is less than what you deserve, you must again ask your employer to increase it. You might be eligible for some disability benefits, depending on your situation.

When taking up light duty, you must also talk about needing breaks to relax your back and time off to attend medical appointments or physiotherapy sessions.

Can Someone Force You to Return to Work?

If your doctor has allowed you to return to work, you must do that. If you don’t, you might end up losing both your job and your disability benefits. When you return to work, and the back issues worsen, you can ask the doctor to analyze your health again and take a short leave.

Talk to an Expert!

If you have more questions regarding return to work in California, feel free to connect with the Laura M. Wilson & Associates Inc team. In addition to helping you get legal advice from an expert, we can help you return to work more confidently after a break, after you recover.

We provide various services such as SJDB Service, RTWSP Service, Expert Witness, Vocational Evaluation, Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling Services, and Transferable Skills Analysis.

Our vocational rehabilitation counselors will decide which services are right for you and offer a solution that helps you return to work and retain your job if you want to.

To book a one-on-one session with one of our experts, book an appointment here or call us toll-free at (800) 531-5608. Our team of experts will devote time to listening to your case and provide you with a customized solution. Get in touch with us today!