Rehabilitation work

As an employer, KI has responsibility for rehabilitation for all co-workers including scholarship-funded doctoral students during their entire period of employment. This means implementing necessary work adaptation and rehabilitation measures to facilitate the co-worker's return to work.

Preventive work

The employer needs to work proactively to promote health and prevent ill-health through identifying early signs of ill-health in co-workers. When there are signs of ill-health, the employer must investigate whether and how the work can be temporarily adapted in order to avoid increased ill-health and sick leave.

Early rehabilitation measures

The responsible manager, along with the support of HR has to initiate rehabilitation measures as soon as possible. This means making early contact, as soon as the health status of the co-worker allows and convening a rehabilitation meeting.  

The rehabilitation work, based on the need, means adapting the work and carrying out rehabilitation measures and/or offering other temporary work tasks, if possible. Work adaptation may concern the workplace, the work environment, the content of the work, for example delimitation of work tasks and/or adaptation of working hours. The employer must appoint a person at the workplace who will be responsible for the follow-up of the return to work with the co-worker.

The following steps shall be included in the employer´s rehabilitation work:

  • A Plan for return to work
  • Work adaptation and rehabilitation measures
  • Modified/new work tasks if necessary

If the co-worker cannot return to his/her ordinary work:

  • Investigate the possibility of a transfer within the department/equivalent
  • Investigate the possibility of a transfer within the whole of KI

Establish a plan for return to work

The responsible manager, along with the support of HR at the department/ equivalent is responsible for establishing a plan for return to work within 30 days when a co-worker/doctoral student is expected to be fully or partially absent from work/studies due to illness for at least 60 days. KI is under obligation to submit a current plan to the Swedish Social Insurance Agency (Försäkringskassan) if the Swedish Social Insurance Agency requests a copy of the plan.

The plan will be based on both the information in the doctor´s certificate and the content of the dialogue with the co-worker/doctoral student. It is to contain the work adaptations and/or rehabilitation measures that the employer carries out and is to be regularly monitored and updated at the rehabilitation meetings between the manager/HR and the co-worker.

A plan for return to work or rehabilitation plan can also be established when a co-worker has been ill on six occasions or more during the last 12 months or if a co-worker has had repeated periods of short-term sick leave for unclear reasons.

 

Procedures and documentation

It is important that it is clear which procedures apply and who does what during the process. The entire rehabilitation work must be documented - ultimately in order for the employer to be able to demonstrate that it has fulfilled its responsibilities in terms of rehabilitation.

  • The employer is to convene regular rehabilitation meetings with the plan for return to work as a basis for following up how the return to work is proceeding.
  • The rehabilitation meetings often has to be more frequent at the beginning of the return to work and when the co-worker increases their working hours.
  • If the co-worker is unable to participate in occasional meetings due to their state of health, the follow-up can be arranged in another appropriate manner.

Document:

  • All rehabilitation meetings and communication via email and telephone that is important to the rehabilitation.
  • All work adaptations and rehabilitation measures.
  • Investigations concerning a transfer and the outcome of this.  

Investigate possibilities for a transfer

It is important to investigate the possibilities for a transfer as early as possible, if it stands clear that the co-worker will not be able to return to regular work at their department. The department/equivalent must then investigate the possibilities for a transfer to any other suitable work or vacant positions at the department/equivalent.

If it is clear that there is no possibility of a transfer at the department, the Negotiations Unit of the HR department can be contacted in order to investigate the possibilities for a transfer throughout the whole of KI.

The right to try other work during sick leave

A co-worker has the possibility to take leave of absence in order to try out a new job if the co-worker has had reduced work capacity due to illness during a period of at least 90 days and if the co-worker agrees on an employment contract with another employer between days 91 and 180 during the sick leave. The co-worker has the right to be on leave of absence in order to try out a new job during 12 months at the most, including the period of sick leave indicated above.

If return to work at KI is not possible

The Swedish Public Employment service may be contacted as soon as it stands clear that all possibilities for rehabilitation and return to work at KI have been exhausted. If a co-worker should get unemployed, they have to register with the Swedish Public Employment Service as a job seeker the first day of unemployment in order to apply for an unemployment benefit. Read more on the page The Swedish Social Insurance Agency and the Rehabilitation chain.

Fulfilled rehabilitation responsibility

In order for KI, as an employer, to be regarded as having fulfilled its rehabilitation responsibility, the employer must have

  • Investigated the need for and implemented work adaptations and rehabilitation measures.
  • Conducted investigations of a transfer and tested reasonable solutions.

The employer´s rehabilitation responsibility can also be considered met if

  • There are no replacement possibilities throughout the whole of KI operations.
  • The co-worker does not participate in their rehabilitation at all.
  • The co-worker turns down an offer of a transfer.
  • The work capacity of the co-worker is significantly and permanently reduced so that the co-worker cannot perform any work of significance for the employer.

Management responsibility

According to the current delegation order, the immediate manager is responsible for the rehabilitation of a co-worker or doctoral student who is on sick leave until the co-worker can return to their regular work, to any other work at KI or until all possibilities for rehabilitation have been exhausted.

Co-worker responsibility

The co-worker has the responsibility for participating actively in their own rehabilitation, depending on their state of health. This means providing sufficient information about their state of health so that an appropriate planning can be established and actively participate in the rehabilitation efforts that are agreed upon with the employer. The co-worker may also suggest different rehabilitation measures that can facilitate the return to work.

Doctor´s certificate

The co-worker has an obligation to provide a current doctor´s certificate to the employer. If the co-worker is unable to directly submit the doctor´s certificate due to their state of health, the employer must be informed that the period of sick leave has been extended.

Laws and provisions

The KI Guidelines for Rehabilitation are based on the following legislation and provisions:

  • Work Environment Act (1977: 1160) (AML), Chapter 2, Section 1, Chapter 3, Sections 2, 2a, 2c and 3
  • Systematic work environment management (AFS 2001:1), provisions
  • Organisational and social work environment (AFS 2015:4), provisions
  • Job adaptation and rehabilitation (AFS 1994:1), provisions
  • Social Insurance Code (SFB) (2010:110)
  • Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (2009:400)  Chapter 39, Sections 1-2
  • Act on the right to leave to try other work due to illness (2008:565)