Thread: Has any one been retrained for employment by Workcover?

Originally Posted by It'sNotWorthComplaining!

Due to an accident and subsequent spinal operation, I have been unable to carry on with my previous labor intensive position.
I return to my employer next week for a maximum of 2 hrs per day, light duties and restricted to not lifting over 2 kilos. desk jockey/stamp licker
This is after having been restricted and spending the last 11 months away from my work place
I have been told by both work cover independent specialists and my own that they do not see me returning to my previous position, and the company is down sizing so not many desk jockey jobs around.( I previously was a desk jockey and didn't like it, I prefer hands on work)

I was told that I would probably have to under go retraining for a new job and that work cover will find me a suitable employer.

So what I want to know is have any of you had any experience in being retrained and re employed via the work cover system. Was it a good experience or was it bad? Did they stuff you around etc etc.
At 50 I'm too old to be put out to pasture.

If you are unable to work full-time in the next two years, you may be eligible for a Disability Support Pension if you meet the eligibility conditions. If you are still receiving compensation payments these will affect the DSP dollar for dollar. If you have received a lump sum payment then there will be a preclusion period in which you are ineligible for Centrelink payments as, in effect, you have received payment in advance for that period. You can still do part time work whilst receiving a DSP up to thirty hours a week but the income reduces the pension according to a set formula.

Give yourself a second hand of cards in this game by contacting the Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service. They used to do good work rehabilitating and retraining injured persons and assisting with job placements.
Howard and Co. ruthlessly gutted them as part of their assault on the public service but CRS survived, unlike the CES with whom CRS were partners in jhob placements.

Keep in mind that you are 50, well past the danger age for future job prospects. In times of high unemployment, CES staff used to tell people over 40-45 to take any job at all that they were offered even if the job seeker thought the job was beneath them. It was likely to be the only one. Age discrimination is now illegal but still widely practised covertly.

http://www.workcover.nsw.gov.au/Docu...rkers_4533.pdf

Workcover is only there to prosecute not help.
They will will put you in touch with a external provider.
Hope things work out. Lots of hoops to jump through........

Thanks for the replies guys.
I'm covered under Victoria Work cover so some things are different than other states. My case manager has been really good in helping me so far, even to the extent of yelling at my employer to get them to give me some work to get me out of the house. Sitting at home get's the depression going and I have been getting councaling for that. Unfortunately I like being active and the other thought going through my mind is the fact due to my age, and retirement approaching, I would have liked to have a better nest egg to see me through. But with the current situation I worry that I'll just end up on the pension with little $$$ to see me through.

Do not know how bad your back is, but you could perhaps do some volentary work to stop you from getting bored. The NSW RFS volenteer firebrigade even has members confined to wheel chairs operating in the radio room during bushfires. One able bodied girl that I met trained as an aircraft traffic controller to direct aircraft waterbombing bushfires from a command vechicle on the fireground. Some of our Group Captains [could typically supervise 40 fire trucks during big fires] with a radio operator sitting beside them, as the group vechile has 5 radios in it, with several calls coming in at once [new didgital radio system just been installed, have not trained on that yet so do not know if that will change the radio situation]. So you could even find volentary jobs that is very full on exciting to do if you want. Do not know about in Victoria though, only about my local area. But do think what you can do that does not stick you in a office, even if it is unpaid volentary work, while you are on a disability pension. Fifty is not the end of the world. I am 61 later this year.

Hey Mate,

I did the back twice..... 1st time private cover, second time work cover. Truth be told I got shafted with the workcover. (QLD claim) It's not that the program was not good, nice physio pgm at the end. It's that I was cut off too ealy, had pain issues for quite a long time.

Then I bought a LAnd Rover D1 and it got considerably better....!!!!
(Sitting position in the car used to be agony)

Mate, you have to get active..... get the old grey matter into gear.
If you like PM me and we can bounce a few ideas....

Onyayoucandoit!!!!

Jay

Sorry not delt wit them.
I am negotiating with work at the moment over part time and work from home as I can't sit for long periods and in my job that what I do.
So far all it's ment for me is I go out for more breaks and have used up quite a bit of sick leave and some annual leave to cover the times awayfrom the office Also lots of $$$ in treatment.

Hope it's not to harsh on you.

The problem I have is I sustained injury to my backneck and shoulder /arm, and have some degeneration of the spine/ spurs or 2, but that's basically age , wear and tear, the back has come good with rest and restriction of what I have been doing. I also sustained a collapsed disc in the neck The op involved removing a disc in my neck and fusion, the nerve impeachment was fixed. I still suffer for pains in the neck and shoulders even after 7 months after the op. I complained about left shoulder and left arm pains since the day of the accident. But all specialists referred it back to my neck, The Neck was the cause etc etc. I felt a million dollars after the op for about 10 days then the pains started again. I finally had an MRI of the left shoulder and they discovered a possible partial tear to the cuff plus fraying?
I then had a cortesone injection into the shoulder joint under ultrasound. That gave me relief for about 4weeks, not it all starts again.
I feel real pain, yet the MRIs and Xrays show everything is ok as far as the doctors can say. It makes me feel sometimes that I'm banging my head up against a brick wall, I start doubting that I have pain really and I'm some sort of a Hypocondriac or something. But you can't image pain when it makes you yelp.

But back to my original post, it seems no one has actually been retrained and are gainfully employed in a new job.

Hi Mate
I went thru the retraining thing as part of my back injury I got from farming.
My employer refused to offer ANY sort of light duties and palmed me off for re-training at the organic farm next door where my Mrs worked at the time.This didnt work and the insurance company decided they would be sending me to one of the roadhouses in town.I told them where they could stick that and go and talk to the 2 mechanics and the welder in town.I actually had a pick of the 3 as all knew me,I chose the welding shop as I love playing with metal.
In the end the insurance co decided to finalise my claim.
I later took on a job doing traffic control on roadworks with the local council,best thing I ever did.
I still have back issues,and always will.BUT the Shire job gave me the will and desire to beat it.In 7 years I have progressed from lollypop boy to roller driver to 6 wheeler tipper to semi trailer to maintence grader driver to leading hand/construction grader driver,Im the boss when our boss is away.I have not had a sickie yet in the 7 years.
Traffic control,although a mundane job is worth looking at.If you get with one of the larger companies you get to travel alot.They seem to take on injured workers as a career change,we have had many work with us when we have used traffic control companies.
BEST OF LUCK OVERCOMING YOUR INJURY
Andrew