AAP
By Colin Brinsden
March 16, 2009
AUSTRALIA Post denies its executives are being paid bonuses for reducing
worker compensation costs.
Claims that doctors are being pressured to dismiss injury claims are a
"slur" on the medical profession, the employer said.
The Communications Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) has
accused Australia Post of rejecting claims from injured workers and unfairly
preventing them from getting compensation. CEPU NSW secretary Jim
Metcher says Australia Post pressured doctors into writing medical
reports dismissive of injury claims, while executives are getting bonuses
for cutting compensation costs. Australia Post said it ensures all staff injured
at work have access to appropriate independent medical practitioners.
"The independent practitioners understand the business and endeavour to
return the employee to work as soon as possible which is the worldwide
basic rehabilitation principle," Australia Post said."Many of these doctors
are the employee's own doctors.
"To suggest these medical practitioners used by Australia Post are anything
but professional is a slur on the medical profession itself." The CEPU believes
lucrative bonuses at Australia Post have led to a culture in which managers
deny injured workers their entitlements. "There are literally hundreds of
people that are caught up in this," Jim Metcher said today."It needs to stop
now." The Government needed to crack down on companies rewarding
executives who slash injury management costs, he said."Rewards and pay
bonuses for executives who rort workers of their entitlements and personal
safety is simply not on," Mr Metcher said.
But Australia Post denies these claims. "Australia Post executives are
not paid bonuses for reducing their compensation costs and do not accept
or deny compensation claims made by staff," it said. "It is important to
remember Australia Post is regularly audited by two external organisations,
including Comcare."
It said employees could also choose to have their matter heard before the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
One long-serving Australia Post employee Gail Seaton said she
was diagnosed with a painful repetitive strain injury - epicondylitis -
by her GP, but a company-appointed specialist subsequently
denied the condition was still active.
She said Australia Post used the specialist's evidence to deny her
compensation claim and then forced her out of her job because she
could not perform her duties. As a result, she was forced to use
all her sick and long service leave entitlements. "It has caused me
and my family a lot of hardship, a lot of stress, and it has been
very sad," Ms Seaton said."I wish Australia Post would reconsider
and send me back to work, take me back to work, because I want
to go back to work."
WCVs: Yeah Right! "Independent Practitioners" my arse!
All of the service providers used for workcover claims are registered and
employed by worksafe, so the use of the word "independent" in this story
is fictitious and even suggesting that this puts a slur on the medical profession
is a joke. The service providers used by worksafe are not squeaky clean nor
do they care about the patients they are seeing because for them, its all
about the money, you only have to see how they treat injured workers
during their consultations to know that!
All service providers have a stake in doing as requested by either the
insurers or worksafe because at the end of the day its worksafe
who pays the bills!!!!!
I have no problems believing the injured workers concerned in this story
as we hear this from injured workers all the time!
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