{"id":56878,"date":"2025-07-15T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaker.ca\/?p=56878"},"modified":"2025-07-15T11:30:00","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T14:30:00","slug":"new-law-aims-to-reduce-impact-to-workers-employers-after-workplace-injury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/?p=56878","title":{"rendered":"New law aims to reduce impact to workers, employers after workplace injury"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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HALIFAX:<\/strong> Starting July 15, new legislation is in effect that requires workers injured on the job and their employers to work together for a timely and safe return to work.

The return-to-work legislation \u2013 known as the Duty to Co-operate \u2013 is part of the Stronger Workplaces for Nova Scotia Act, introduced and passed in September 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is one of several steps the Province has taken to improve the workers\u2019 compensation system and help workers recover and stay connected to their workplace after a workplace injury.

\u201cThese changes are about making return to work part of recovery,\u201d said Nolan Young, Minister of Labour, Skills and Immigration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe know that when workers stay connected to the workplace after an injury, they recover better and have better long-term outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ADVERTISEMENT:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The new legislation requires collaboration between employers, workers and the Workers\u2019 Compensation Board of Nova Scotia (WCB Nova Scotia) to support an early and safe return to work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Employers are expected to offer meaningful accommodations, such as the type of work available, and maintain open communication, while workers are expected to participate in planning for a safe return, which may include helping identify suitable work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

WCB Nova Scotia helps guide the process and ensures all parties are meeting their responsibilities.

Over the past six months, WCB Nova Scotia has worked with employers, workers and healthcare providers to prepare for the change, including offering webinars, tools and resources to help workplaces get ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ADVERTISEMENT:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Quotes:
<\/strong>\u201cResearch, experience and common sense all tell us the same thing: when it\u2019s safe to do so, staying connected to work helps people recover faster and more fully. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duty to Co-operate is about ensuring no one goes through recovery or return to work alone. Workers want to get back to their lives, and employers want a strong, stable workforce. We believe in that shared goal.\u201d
\u2014 Karen Adams, Chief Executive Officer, WCB Nova Scotia

<\/em>Quick Facts:
<\/strong>– the new legislation reflects key recommendations from the 2024 review of the workers\u2019 compensation system
– Nova Scotia has the lowest return-to-work rates and one of the longest claim durations in Canada, averaging 168 days in 2022
– workers injured on the job in Nova Scotia are returning to work more slowly than they were a decade ago:
     – within 30 days \u2013 46 per cent in 2022, down from 52 per cent in 2012
     – within 180 days \u2013 81 per cent in 2022, down from 88 per cent in 2012
– workers have better physical, psychological and financial outcomes when they stay connected to work during recovery
– WCB Nova Scotia\u2019s 2024-2030 strategic plan, Protect More, focuses on three key pillars: injury prevention, return to work and exceptional service

Additional Resources:
<\/strong>WCB Nova Scotia \u2013 Duty to Co-operate:
https:\/\/www.wcb.ns.ca\/Return-to-Work\/Duty-to-Cooperate<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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HALIFAX: Starting July 15, new legislation is in effect that requires workers injured on the job and their employers to work together for a timely and safe return to work. The return-to-work legislation \u2013 known as the Duty to Co-operate \u2013 is part of the Stronger Workplaces for Nova Scotia Act, introduced and passed in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53494,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[957],"tags":[6405,48,7701,1077,8769,4837,8770],"class_list":["post-56878","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-employment","tag-n-s","tag-nolan-young","tag-nova-scotia","tag-return-to-work","tag-wcb","tag-workers-compensation-board-of-nova-scotia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56878","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=56878"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56878\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/53494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=56878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=56878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=56878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}