Disability management practices in education, hotel/motel, and health care workplaces.
BACKGROUND
The high costs and the impact of work disability have become a growing concern for workplaces. As a result, workplace disability management approaches have been developed to lower disability costs, protect the employability of workers, and promote early return to work.


METHODS
A stratified random sample of 455 employers in education (n = 157), hotel/motel (n = 110), and health care (n = 188) sectors who completed a mailed Organizational Policies and Practices (OPP) questionnaire is reported. The OPP questionnaire asked questions about eight workplace disability management practices. The article examined the multi-dimensionality, internal consistency, and discriminant validity of the OPP and compares disability management practices across the three sectors.


RESULTS
The OPP questionnaire showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.95) and discriminant validity. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) for each of the eight subscales demonstrated that there were statistically significant differences between the sectors in ergonomic practices (F (2,452) = 15.8, P < 0.001), disability case management (F (2,452) = 4.6, P < 0.01), return to work (F (2,452) = 10.3, P < 0.001), and people-oriented culture (F (2,452) = 4.5, P < 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
On examining disability management practices in education, hotel/motel, and health care sectors, the OPP seems to be a promising instrument that can be used to assess and monitor how employers are managing disability.
Williams
Renee M
RM
School of Rehabilitation Science, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. rwilliam@mcmaster.ca
Westmorland
Muriel G
MG
Shannon
Harry S
HS
Rasheed
Farah
F
Amick
Benjamin C
BC
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D019090:Case Management; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D006804:Ergonomics; D019981:Health Care Sector / Q000458:organization & administration; D006268:Health Facilities; D006801:Humans; D016272:Occupational Health; D009864:Ontario; D016134:Organizational Policy; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012574:Schools / Q000458:organization & administration; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation*