Where’s your Brown Envelope?

If your employee is injured in the workplace, do you know your next course of action?

What if an employee is injured and you aren’t there? Are you confident your organization knows how to handle the situation properly?

Allow us to introduce you to what Service Hospitality refers to as the ‘Brown Envelope:’

This is a pre-arranged package of resources, along with an outlined procedure, that eliminates any uncertainty or confusion about what to do if an employee is injured at work. The ‘Brown Envelope’ is also crucial to your Claims Management System.

Contents of the ‘Brown Envelope:’

• W1: Worker’s Report of Injury—If your worker is going to the doctor because of a WCB claim…they must complete a W1.
• Letter to the Doctor—Instead of explaining the process, have your worker provide a letter to the doctor. This should outline your organization’s ability to accommodate most injuries. It will also request that the doctor complete another document, the “Fitness for Modified Work Form.”
• The letter to the doctor also states that your organization will pay the cost of completing the Fitness for Modified Work Form. Yes, it will cost you, but it will also get you the information you need to accommodate the injured worker and get them back to work as soon as is medically possible.  If you don’t pay, it is MUCH harder to acquire this information.
• Letter to the Employee—This letter outlines to the worker what your organization has in place in terms of a modified work program and your organization’s commitment to accommodating any injury. It confirms your support and commitment to the worker.
• Modified Work Policy/Procedure—Please also include a copy of your current Modified Work or Gradual Return to Work Policy or Procedure (organization-specific) as a reference for both the injured worker and the doctor.

With a ‘Brown Envelope’ procedure and modified work policy in place, the scenario following an injury should look like this:

• Step 1: Worker reports an injury
  • Determine if medical care is needed. If not, record first aid; if so, proceed to step 2.
• Step 2: Provide employees with brown envelopes and accompany them to the doctor
  • Driving your workers to the doctor instead of sending them on their own shows that you are committed to them and support them during this difficult time.
  • Sure, you could send them on their own, but as soon as they leave your building, you have lost an opportunity to build a relationship and to better control the situation. You have also created a delay from the time the doctor completes the Fitness for Modified Work Form to the time you see it.
• Step 3: Doctor assesses and completes Fitness for Modified Work Form
• Step 4: Based on the restrictions provided, you (the employer) determine if you can accommodate. Yes? Great! Set it up. No? Send the employee home with a pre-determined communication plan.

If you have any questions about putting together your own Brown Envelope or how to modify our policy/procedure templates to best suit your organization, please email us at info@servicehospitality.com. We will connect you with a member of our Safety Advisor team and ensure you are prepared for any injury.