Occupational Rehabilitation & Return to Work Specialist

• Help employees with complex and long-term injuries reconnect with meaningful work
• Collingwood location with hybrid working - $140,000 Total remuneration package
• Full time, permanent. Work face-to-face with injured workers, psychologists & GPs

Your role:

This is not a traditional return-to-work role.

You'll work with employees experiencing complex or long-term injuries where returning to their substantive role may not be considered possible. Your role will be to understand what the person can do, identify what could be possible, and bring the right people together to make it happen.

You'll work face-to-face with injured workers, psychologists, GPs, allied health professionals and managers, using your rehabilitation expertise and your ability to build relationships and influence others to create practical pathways back to work.

That might mean breaking a role down into its key tasks, identifying duties an employee can safely perform, and working with managers to create a new combination of duties, projects, training or alternative work.

Make your mark:

You are an experienced occupational rehabilitation professional who understands the Victorian Workers Compensation Scheme and knows how to navigate the complexities of return-to-work planning.

But technical expertise alone isn't enough.

You are a personable, energetic and highly influential. You can build trust with an injured worker, have a credible conversation with a GP or psychologist, and then confidently engage a manager to consider what might be possible within their team.

You are comfortable challenging assumptions respectfully. When someone says “they can't return to work”, your instinct is to ask “what could they do?

You are persistent without being pushy, compassionate without losing sight of outcomes, and creative enough to look beyond traditional rehabilitation pathways. 

What are we looking for:

• A tertiary qualification in Workplace Health and Safety, Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation Counselling, Health Sciences, Psychology, or a related discipline
• Experience working within the Victorian Workers Compensation Scheme
• Experience in occupational rehabilitation, workplace reintegration or return-to-work services
• Demonstrated experience working with complex or long-term injury claims, particularly where return to work has become difficult or stalled
• Strong understanding of return-to-work legislation, principles and processes
• The ability to assess an individual's capabilities, transferable skills and medical restrictions and translate these into practical workplace opportunities
• The ability to break roles down into their key tasks and identify alternative combinations of duties, projects, training or other meaningful work
• Exceptional relationship-building and influencing skills, with the confidence to engage GPs, psychologists, allied health professionals, injured workers and managers
• High levels of energy, resilience and persistence, with the ability to keep people engaged and focused on what is possible
• Strong coaching, negotiation and stakeholder management skills
• A creative, solutions-focused mindset and the confidence to challenge traditional approaches to return to work 

Make it work:

• Work in a high-energy role where your ideas, persistence and ability to influence can directly change outcomes
• $140,000 Total Remuneration Package including super and a $13,000 car allowance, or choose a fully maintained vehicle in lieu of the allowance. This puts the base salary at around $112,000
• Salary packaging is available up to $15,900 plus an entertainment card to increase your take home pay
• Hybrid working with an office based in Collingwood, travel required throughout the state
• Access our Well Worth It! Program, EIP and EAP, plus discounted health insurance
• Benefit from a dedicated Learning & Development team to support your career
• Join a diverse and inclusive organisation committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels safe, acknowledged and included

What our people say - “ I feel really supported - probably the most supported I’ve ever felt in a workplace. This job can be really difficult, so if you’re supported, that’s half the battle for me. Knowing it's there means I can go out and do the work.”

Ready to make the difference?

If you're an experienced occupational rehabilitation professional who thrives on complexity, enjoys finding creative solutions and has the energy and influence to bring people with you, we'd love to hear from you.

This is an opportunity to take a different approach to return to work, helping people, managers and health professionals see possibilities where a pathway back to work may not currently exist.

You can download and review the full position description here: People & Culture Intensive Workplace Recovery Specialist.

All you need to do is click 'Apply now', which will take you to the application portal, or visit our careers page and select “apply”.

To support your application, please provide us with a resume, along with a 1-page cover letter that describes you, your motivation to apply and anything you feel might add value to your application and set you apart.

We may reach out during the advertising period to discuss your application in more detail and ask some further questions. We also invite you to do the same. Please contact Sharon Lavars, General Manager Health, Safety and Wellbeing via email at sharon.lavars@anglicarevic.org.au using the subject line: Occupational Rehabilitation & Return to Work Specialist enquiry via EthicalJobs.

Please Note: It is mandatory for the successful applicant to hold a current Working with Children Check and be prepared to undergo a National Criminal History Check prior to commencement.

Anglicare Victoria acknowledges Aboriginal people as the traditional custodians of the land on which we operate. We commit to working respectfully to honour their ongoing cultural and spiritual connections to this country.

Diversity and inclusivity are important to Anglicare Victoria and we are committed to ensuring our workplace and services reflect this. Everyone is welcome at Anglicare Victoria, regardless of age, ethnicity, cultural background, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation and physical ability.