This is the 4th part of 4-part series about considerations for overseas employees:
Return to Work- When developing your workers’ comp program, consider how gradual return to work for overseas assignments will be handled. Where and when will they return to work? Many companies have them resume their original positions overseas, but depending on where medical treatment is provided, consider having overseas employees return to U.S. until fully recovered. Include this infomation in the Employee Brochure or have a separate brochure for overseas employees as many things may be different.
Coordination of Benefits – Make sure short and long term benefits are coordinated with statutory benefits or voluntary workers’ comp benefits. You want to provide coverage with no gaps and no overlaps. Make sure the policies allow offsets for amount paid under other policies.
Emergency Evacuation Plans – Emergency plans must be practiced in advance and posted in conspicuous locations. Phone service (sometimes satellite service) should be tested regularly to ensure it is reliable. Wallet-size instruction cards should be provided for each supervisor and employee with detailed emergency instructions.
For more cost-saving tips go to WC Cost Reduction Tips.
Show the REAL cost of workers’ comp with the Real Cost Calculator.
Workers’ Comp Kit® is a web-based online Assessment, Benchmarking and Cost Containment system for employers.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws are different. Consult with your corporate legal counsel before implementing any cost containment programs.
©2008 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
In addition to the items mentioned in the previous two segments about injuries occurring overseas, consider the following:
Safety Investigation – A safety evaluation will likely need to be done after any injury. Note whether any remedial actions must be taken so no further injuries occur.
Medical Coordination- Work with a travel medicine company and a representative of the other country to set up a plan that provides excellent medical care if needed when employees are traveling to or stationed overseas. If you have a large project in a remote part of Brazil, for example, contingency plans for air evacuation and treatment in another country will be needed.�
Site Physician – You may need to hire a doctor for on-site to ensure proper triage and medical care.
For more cost savings tips go to WC Cost Reduction Tips.
Show the REAL cost of workers comp with the Real Cost Calculator.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws are different. Consult with your corporate legal counsel before implementing any cost containment programs.
©2008 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
When a company has employees traveling outside the U.S. or stationed outside the U.S. on temporary or permanent assignment, there are many post-loss activities to consider. These may be quite different than for U.S.-based employees. Pre-placement Screening – Consider whether pre-placement medical exam in necessary for employees traveling abroad is prudent because medical care may not be readily available overseas. Prepare an Assignment Letter – Provide employees on temporary or permanent assignment a letter describing their assignment, location, wages, any additional allowances such as schooling for children or job placement for spouses. This information will be useful for the employee and also for the carrier in the event their is a loss as this helps determine the lost wages and other benefits to which they may be entitled. Account Instructions – Make sure the adjusters know who to contact in the U.S. if there is a loss overseas. Claim handling strategy may be different, and perhaps the U.S. risk manager will want to be notified on all overseas claims. Every step should be spelled out in advance and listed in the account instructions. Investigation - Several considerations in claims investigations are that claims must be reported rapidly. The should be reported within 24 hours. The claims handling packet from an employer may be different for overseas losses than for U.S. based losses. Witness Statements, Supervisor Statements, Medical Reports, must all be obtained immediately and there may have variations for overseas injuries, so review these documents with that in mind. There will be company investigations and insurer investigations. There is much to consider when a company has employees traveling or stationed outside the U.S. These are only a few of the considerations For more cost savings tips go to WC Cost Reduction Tips. Show the REAL cost of workers comp with the Real Cost Calculator. Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws are different. Consult with your corporate legal counsel before implementing any cost containment programs. ©2008 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
When employees travel abroad for work, you must consider whether they are covered under your workers’ compensation policies. Your broker should be able to help you with this issue.
To start, review the following:
Policy Territory – To see if the territory they are traveling to is covered under your policy. The employees need to be covered in all countries they are traveling to or doing business in.
Named Insured – Make sure all subsidiaries including those outside the U.S. are covered. Include any operations outside the U.S. if employees from those operations are working inside the U.S. Or, perhaps consider assigning those employees to a U.S. operation if they will be in the U.S. longer than a few days.
Voluntary Workers’ Comp- If employees are outside the U.S. for more than 30 days, you may need to add voluntary worker’s comp coverage to your policy. If outside the U.S. for more than 30 days they may be considered on permanent assignment instead of temporary assignment, so check your policy carefully. You may need an endorsement to cover those employees.
Payroll Reporting – You should separate employees on overseas assignment when reporting payroll to your carrier because it may be rated differently.
These are only a few of the many considerations to keep in mind when reviewing your employees based in another country or traveling to another country. Make sure to check with your insurance broker to make sure you are properly covered.
For more cost savings tips go to WC Cost Reduction Tips.
Show the REAL cost of workers comp with the Real Cost Calculator.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws are different. Consult with your corporate legal counsel before implementing any cost containment programs.
©2008 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
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