Easy ways to bring your fast food employee back to work

Bringing someone back to work with restrictions for a full 8 hours can be very difficult in a restaurant due to the physical nature of most jobs. That is why, in most states, employers and carriers are given some creativity on how they can put together job tasks and duties which are both meaningful and useful. They can do this by supplementing the tasks performed with either safety training and/or similar duties in a non-profit setting.

Consider an employee who can only stand for 3 continuous hours per day with no more than 6 total hours standing. You have 3 slower hours during the day where that individual can work drive through with a stool and can help restocking and refilling table condiments. To fill in the remaining hours, the carrier may be able to set that employee up at a computer in the break room for safety training. Therefore, the employee is back to work and not likely to succumb to the psychological temptations of being off work for a prolonged period of time and you also help to reduce claim costs and therefore your experience modification and future premiums.

The next time you are faced with an employee coming back to work and you have some ability to bring them back to work consider these supplemental job duties and speak with your broker and carrier to determine if that is a viable option.