Recruitment and workforce decisions are critical for businesses and shifting local and global economies make them even more significant. Identifying and retaining the right employees helps avoid major costs and frustration. In Australia, rising retirement ages and increased reliance on temporary workers are reshaping workforce dynamics. These long-term employment trends, recently highlighted by a leading journalist, are expected to continue influencing workers’ compensation.
Long Term Employment Trends – The Impact to Workers Compensation:
Our thoughts, key points and link to Ross Gittins’ Sydney Morning Herald article are below:
- Over time there has been a significant increase in the participation of workers over 55 and over 65
- Increase use of temporary labour, such as 457 visas – Australia now grant about 125,000 a year
- Industries where labour participation has increased are – health and social services, professional and technology services and construction.
- In March 2014, nearly 900,000 people held temporary visas with work rights, over 200,000 on skilled “457 visas” and about 370,000 on student visas. If all participated, they would represent around 7% of the labour force.
What this means for businesses and workers compensation;
- We are seeing alignment to the data above where claims are coming from older employees or over 50
- Workers on 457 visas are fully entitled to workers’ compensation, which affects employer premiums and requires a return-to-work plan. Employers must therefore provide suitable tasks and support the return-to-work process.
- Access to medical history in some cases is critical to understanding the pre-existing conditions of an injured worker, it can be difficult to access records if the injured worker is from overseas or a temporary resident with a work visa.
Employers must recognize their liability when hiring, especially with more older and temporary workers entering the workforce. Businesses should conduct thorough checks to ensure they recruit the right people. Pre-employment medicals or assessments can help identify issues early, while fair consideration of all candidates avoids discrimination. ABILITY GROUP supports employers with medical screenings and expert reviews, helping reduce recruitment risks.
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
Title: Long-term employment trends: retired workers happy to put their feet up
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