Human Resources Representatives within UW–Madison Schools, Colleges, and Divisions collaborate with the Office of Risk Management to support the worker’s compensation claims process by:
- Assuring timely and proper reporting of employee work injuries and work injury-related leave absences;
- Maintaining communications with the injured employee during the claims administration process to stay apprised of changes in the employee’s work status;
- Assuring confidentiality of all information related to an injured employee’s worker’s compensation claim is maintained;
- Assuring documentation and information received pertinent to the claim is provided to the Office of Risk Management Worker’s Compensation Coordinator; and by,
- Assisting injured employees in returning to work as soon as medically feasible.
Claims reporting - HR representative responsibilities
Upon learning of an employee’s work-related injury or illness, the HR representative must:
- Immediately obtain the completed Employee’s Work Injury and Illness Report and Supervisor’s Incident Analysis and Prevention Report and;
- Submit the completed forms to UW-Madison’s Worker’s Compensation Coordinator, in one of the following three (3) manners:
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- Via email at workcompprog@bussvc.wisc.edu (preferred);
- Via fax at (608) 265-3624 (less desired); and/or
- By entering the claim into the Enterprise STARS Worker’s Compensation claims system
Responsibilities of HR representatives during the worker’s compensation claims process
Administration of a Worker’s Compensation claim is multifaceted, requiring prompt, ongoing communications and conveyance of information between the injured employee, supervisor, Human Resources representative, payroll specialist, Worker’s Compensation Coordinator, and UW System’s Worker’s Compensation Claims Examiner.
Outlined below are necessary roles and responsibilities of Human Resources representatives in supporting the worker’s compensation claims process:
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List of HR responsibilities during claims process
- Assist the Office of Risk Management Worker’s Compensation Coordinator in investigating circumstances of the injury and obtaining information pertinent to the claim.
- Maintain contact with the injured employee, whether the employee is at work or home to stay apprised of changes in the employee’s work status.
- Serve as a liaison between the employee and the Office of Risk Management Worker’s Compensation Coordinator, referring the injured employee to the Worker’s Compensation Coordinator if any questions arise concerning the Worker’s Compensation claims administration process.
- Keep the Office of Risk Management Worker’s Compensation Coordinator apprised of any problems or issues with the claim.
- Through the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR), work with the injured employee and/or their treating specialist to obtain timely, up-to-date documentation regarding the employee’s work status and/or Return to Work (RTW) restrictions. Provide to the Worker’s Compensation Coordinator, all medical off-work/RTW medical notes for the employee and any other medical documentation that is received.
- Provide timely work status updates and Leave documentation to the Office of Risk Management Worker’s Compensation Coordinator, including:
- Updates on changes in employee work status and Return to Work information;
- WC Lost Timesheets for the injured employee (submitted bi-weekly or monthly, as applicable);
- Leave updates (including leave taken without pay); and
- Other claim-related documentation as received, including any medical bills or reports for the injured employee.
- In coordination with the Divisional Payroll & Benefits Specialist, ensure Leave and Benefits WC Restorations are completed timely for employees who have taken Medical Leave from work due to a compensable work-related injury.
- Working through the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR), assist in campus RTW activities. To facilitate the employee’s RTW, the DDR will:
- Obtain Return to Work (RTW) and/or Work Restriction medical documentation from the injured employee’s treating specialist;
- Correspond with the treating specialist to clarify employer-related concerns;
- Contact the employee’s supervisor to assure understanding of any necessary temporary work adjustments and identify suitable temporary work tasks for the injured employee;
- Assist with the development of temporary duty assignments, as appropriate, to return the employee to work.
Commonly used worker’s compensation forms and resources
Frequently Asked Questions
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If an employee sustains a minor injury that does not require medical treatment or there no lost time from work, does the incident still need to be reported?
Yes. All work-related injuries and illnesses, even those that do not require medical treatment or time lost from work, should be reported within 24 hours of knowledge.
If persons such as Fellow, Scholars, Postdoctoral Fellows, Postdoctoral Trainees and Student Interns/Trainees are not eligible for Worker's Compensation benefits, are they covered another way if injured on campus?
In the event of injury, persons on campus who are not eligible for worker’s compensation benefits are encouraged to seek medical treatment through their student health insurance or private health insurance coverage.
Do full-time academic staff report sick leave related to medical appointments/actual lost time hours used?
Yes, employees should report actual hours used. The system will process as 4 or 8 hours for full time employees and the UWSC will adjust the entry so it processes according to the worker’s compensation letter. Since monthly leave accounting doesn’t pass directly to the paycheck, entry can be corrected at any time without much impact.
If an injured employee has exhausted all of their leave, what occurs in the worker’s compensation leave restoration process?
If an employee has no leave remaining, there will be no restoration process.
If all leave is exhausted, the employee can take leave without pay. This will cause further reduction of leave because leave is allocated and assumed the employee works 100% of their FTE. If they have leave without pay (LWOP), the accrual will be reduced.
So, in addition to not getting pay for the period while on leave of absence (LOA), they also lose the accrual that would have been paid previously. They also are responsible for the WRS contributions and without any money to support the deduction, they will need to pay it back once they return. It is best to try not to use all “available” leave but rather earned leave. This avoids needing to repay leave ultimately because unearned due to LWOP.
Contact
Worker’s Compensation
21 N. Park St., Suite 5301
Madison, WI 53715
Note – Please contact the email address with questions and/or to schedule an in-person meeting. Advanced meeting scheduling is necessary in order to meet with Risk Management staff; drop-in appointments are not available.
(608) 265-9475
Fax: (608) 265-3624