Absence Management

Employee Benefits of an MDOS Program

Ella Baker
Employee Benefits of an MDOS Program
Reading time 4 Mins
Published on Jul 6
Share

A win-win for employees and employers

Modified duty off-site (MDOS) programs assist in returning employees to work through temporary off-site job placements. These placements are typically made for workers in industries for which on-site modified duty is difficult or nearly impossible, such as construction, some manufacturing, and other industries that require intensive amounts of manual labor. Such off-site placements are typically made with non-profit organizations in the community where the business operates or the worker lives. MDOS allow employees to maintain a productive work lifestyle while transitioning to their regular jobs, decreasing workers’ compensation costs for the employer.

Full salary and benefits retention

When an employee is injured on the job resulting in an extended absence from the workplace for recovery, they receive workers’ compensation indemnity payments. Meant to sustain the employee during their recovery period, these indemnity payments are typically less than the actual employee’s actual salary.

Additionally, during an employee’s recovery period, the employee and the employer must make arrangements for the employee to pay their portion of any employer-sponsored benefits programs. These can include an employee’s share of health, dental, and vision insurance premium costs.

MDOS programs allow employees to return to work sooner, with less wages lost and less money out of pocket for continuation of benefits. These programs can help employees remain more financially secure, while ensuring there is no gap in their regular benefits.

Faster recovery and maintain strength and endurance

Multiple studies and much research has proven that employees who are actively engaged in some type of work, even if it isn’t their regular job duties, recover faster than employees off on temporary total disability (TTD). MDOS programs allow employees to perform duties for which their physician has cleared them, allowing them to begin the transition back into the workforce sooner after an injury.

Workers who return to work on MDOS programs have improved strength and endurance recovery rates over their TTD counterparts, preparing them for a safer gradual return to pre-injury workplace duties. Keeping employees productive helps avoid “disability syndrome” and can help reduce or eliminate work adjustment issues down the road.

In addition to the concrete physical outcomes associated with them, MDOS programs also offer therapeutic elements and promote improve employee morale and feelings of self-worth. MDOS programs prepare employees to transition back into regular duty faster, both mentally and physically.

Increased odds of returning to work

The longer an employee is away from active employment, the less likely they are to return to work. MDOS programs offer employees an alternative to their regular duties that can help speed their recovery period.

In fact, employees who participate in MDOS programs are more likely to return to the job role they held prior to their injury than those who do not. This can be attributed largely to the programs allowing employees to become productive members of the team again, thus increasing their desire to return to work and shortening their recovery period.

MDOS programs show that an employer is dedicated to the health and recovery of their employees. This kind of thoughtfulness on the part of the employer is often rewarded with increased loyalty and engagement from employees, making them more desirous of returning to their pre-injury role than employees in companies that do not offer such programs.

MDOS and Sheakley

Sheakley specializes in finding light duty solutions for clients, including providing temporary job placement with nonprofit organizations. Utilizing state of the art technology, Sheakley’s experts are able to identify work assignments that meet your employee’s work restrictions and that are convenient for their location. Sheakley has a 99 percent placement success rate, with most placements occurring within 24 to 48 hours. Individual attention with a Nurse Case Manager during the placement appointment is also given during the placement appointment to review program details with your employee and to ensure that the nonprofit understands and accommodates all physical work restrictions.

Schedule your free consultation today with Christine Nickloes ([email protected]), Sheakley’s resident MDOS expert.

Stay up-to-date on all things Sheakley by subscribing to our blog and following us on social media. Join in the discussion by commenting below.


You may want to read

See all articles
X
X
X
X