Check a New South Wales workplace return to work program against the employer category
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the employer's premium, insurer and worker numbers, mark category 1 or category 2 using the SIRA guidelines, and list gaps in the return to work program. Do not decide that suitable work is reasonably practicable.
- What the lawyer must review
- Confirm the category. Section 52 does not itself state the premium or worker tests
- A program must be written, consulted on, and not inconsistent with the insurer's program
- Category 1 appoints a trained coordinator and must display or notify the program
- Category 2 need not appoint a coordinator. Check the regulation before dropping display
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. A New South Wales employer's workplace return to work program
Produce. A category checklist and a list of gaps, for the lawyer to confirm.
Have ready. Basic tariff premium, insurer type and worker or employee numbers; The written program, and how it is displayed or given to workers; Whether a coordinator is appointed, for a possible category 1 employer.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The premium is $60,000 and there is no coordinator. The list marks category 1 on the guideline test and records the missing coordinator and the missing display. It does not say the employer has offered suitable work.
Stop and hand it back when
- The category is taken from an unopened regulation definition rather than flagged for the lawyer.
- The list decides that suitable work is, or is not, reasonably practicable.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From the employer's premium, insurer and worker numbers, mark category 1 or category 2 using the SIRA guidelines, and list gaps in the return to work program. Do not decide that suitable work is reasonably practicable. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Section 52(1) of the 1998 Act requires an employer to establish a return-to-work program for rehabilitation and, if necessary, vocational re-education. The program must not be inconsistent with the insurer's injury management program, and is of no effect to the extent of any inconsistency.
- Section 52(2) requires the program to comply with Authority guidelines, to be developed in consultation with the workers and any industrial union representing them, to be in writing, and to be displayed or notified on a website or by another method the regulations authorise. Those duties are subject to the regulations. The regulations may exempt classes of employers. The Workers Compensation Regulation 2016 was not opened.
- The SIRA guidelines, made under section 52, describe category 1 as a basic tariff premium over $50,000 a year, a self-insured employer, or an employer insured by a specialised insurer with more than 20 workers. The same page also says 'more than 20 employees'. Category 2 is any employer that is not category 1. The table also describes category 2 as a premium of $50,000 or less, or a specialised insurer with 20 employees or less. The guidelines say the categories are defined in the 1998 Act and the 2016 Regulation. Those definition texts were not opened.
- Both categories need a program within 12 months of becoming that category, reviewed at least every two years, developed in consultation with workers and any industrial union. A category 1 program must align with the insurer's injury management program. The coordinator has relevant training and is employed or engaged by the employer. Failure to display or notify a category 1 program is an offence. A category 2 employer need not appoint a coordinator, should nominate a person responsible for recovery at work, may adopt SIRA's standard category 2 program, and need not display the program if workers are informed and copies are available.
- The guidelines say employers must offer suitable work where reasonably practicable, including when a claim is in dispute. The employment may be full-time or part-time and, where reasonably practicable, the same as or equivalent to the pre-injury employment. The tool does not decide that suitable work is reasonably practicable.
Sources
- SIRA: Guidelines for workplace return to work programs · 2026-10-23
- Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW) section 52 · 2026-10-23
The guidelines page says content may change as reforms are implemented and points to the SIRA information hub. Re-read the current guidelines before relying on the premium and worker figures.
Health and wage records stay in a firm-controlled tool. Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules rule 9 and Australian Privacy Principle 11 apply, and a breach may be notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).