Returning to work after a tree work injury: what the schemes in Ontario, British Columbia, California and the United Kingdom say

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It covers what happens after a claim, not how to report an injury or by when. Those are on the guide to reporting injuries by country. The cost side is on the guides to workers compensation rates for the United States and for Canada, Australia and New Zealand. None of the pages below is written only for tree work.

The four schemes

Scheme	What the source says
Ontario, WSIB	Builds a return-to-work plan with the employer and the worker. Uses the term "modified work" for lighter duties. Says that with its help 9 out of 10 injured people are back at work within 12 months. Employer-facing page updated August 5, 2026.
British Columbia, WorkSafeBC	Describes a return-to-work plan covering functional abilities, job duties and hours of work. Names alternate tasks and a modified schedule. A legal duty to cooperate applies to workers and employers from January 1, 2024.
California, Division of Workers' Compensation	The treating doctor reports to the claims administrator on the ability to work. The employer then offers regular, alternative or modified work, or not, depending on that report.
United Kingdom, GOV.UK	The employer guide covers Statutory Sick Pay, not a return-to-work plan. It shows SSP at GBP 123.25 a week or 80% of average weekly earnings, if that is less, paid for up to 28 weeks, as shown on October 9, 2026.

Ontario

The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board's page on returning to work says its goal is to help the worker get back to suitable, safe work as soon as possible. It lists the people a return-to-work team can include: the employee, the employer, a supervisor, an occupational health or human resources representative, a union representative where there is one, and the joint health and safety committee or health and safety representative. It describes three WSIB roles. The case manager decides whether the employee is eligible for benefits, shares information about the employee's abilities and precautions, and sets goals with the employer, the employee and the health care provider. The nurse consultant gives medical advice on health challenges that may delay recovery. The return-to-work specialist explains rights and responsibilities, runs meetings at the workplace, and gives vocational rehabilitation planning if the employee must move to a different job.

WSIB also publishes a tool of modified work suggestions. The employer picks an industry classification code, reviews a list of duties other businesses in that industry have offered, and gets a sample letter offering the chosen duties. The page says research shows returning to work as soon as possible improves recovery.

British Columbia

WorkSafeBC's page on return to work says a plan is built by the injured worker and the employer, for example a supervisor or return-to-work coordinator, with a WorkSafeBC team member, the health care provider or a union representative possibly involved. It says the amendments to the Workers Compensation Act effective January 1, 2024 give employers and workers a legal duty to cooperate with each other and with WorkSafeBC. A second duty applies to some employers: they must maintain an injured worker's employment if they regularly employ 20 or more workers and have employed the injured worker for at least one year before the injury. The page presents "work as therapy" as an approach that helps people recover faster.

California

The Division of Workers' Compensation page How I return to work names four parties who work out when the worker is ready and what work they will do: the primary treating doctor, the employer, the claims administrator, and the worker's attorney if there is one. It says the doctor reports on the ability to return to work, and the worker receives an offer of regular, alternative or modified work, or no offer, depending on that report. It also names supplemental job displacement benefits for a worker with permanent disability who is not offered work, and says employers get incentives to return injured employees to work quickly. The division's injured worker page says the employer must pay for medical care for a job injury whether or not time is missed from work, and that it is illegal for an employer to punish or fire a worker for having a job injury or asking for workers' compensation benefits.

United Kingdom

The GOV.UK Statutory Sick Pay employer guide says employees may be eligible for SSP and that an employer can offer more through a company scheme but cannot offer less. It adds that statutory annual leave keeps accruing while an employee is off sick and can be taken during sick leave. The page does not describe a return-to-work plan or lighter duties.