Employer Participation Info Sheet

Attachment M:

The Employer participation Information Sheet

June 10, 2014

Effect of Wellness Grant on Worker Health and Safety

Employer Interview Participation Information:

Who is conducting the study?

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (OBWC) Division of Safety and Hygiene has partnered with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Center for Workers’ Compensation Studies (CWCS) to evaluate the OBWC Workplace Wellness Grant Program. NIOSH is the U.S. federal agency, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), that studies worker safety and health. The NIOSH Center for Workers’ Compensation Studies (CWCS) was established in 2013 to use workers’ compensation data and systems to improve workplace safety and health. CWCS goals include maximizing the use of workers’ compensation data for prevention purposes and sharing best study practices in workers’ compensation.

What is the purpose?

• NIOSH is partnering with OBWC to determine the effectiveness and economic return of the OBWC Workplace Wellness Grant Program.

• The purpose of this interview is to assess employers’ total cost for their wellness programs relative to the wellness grant money received from OBWC as an important component of estimating economic return.

• This requires accurate estimates of total program costs which are expected to exceed the amount that employers receive in grants from OBWC. NIOSH and OBWC are conducting these in-depth, structured interviews with at least 25 randomly selected, participating employers.

• These are questions that can only be capture by conducting interviews like this to as employers about time, effort and other expenses beyond what was funded by the WWGP.

What will happen during the interview?

• We will be interviewing you about your wellness program as well as your occupational safety and health program.

• In order to capture your total program costs we will ask you a series of detailed questions that are meant to trigger your memory and help us to capture total program costs, not just invoiced program expenses.

• Please answer the question using whatever level of detail seems reasonable for your situation.

• We don’t expect precise answers to all our questions.

• You can expect that some study staff will sit in and take notes during the interview. Also, we would like to make a digital audio recording of the interview. Only NIOSH study staff will be able to use the recordings. The audio recordings are to supplement our written notes. At the end of the study, we will delete the audio files.

How would you like me to prepare for the interview?

• Although we don’t expect precise answer to all our questions, the interview will be easier if you take some time to gather information and records to help answer our questions. Keep in mind that this is not an audit.

• Think and gather information or records that will be useful for valuing people’s time:

  1. the people at your organization who have been involved in planning and managing your wellness program — personnel involved, work time spent managing and running your program, types of jobs (e.g. human resources, management), general levels of pay;

  2. wellness program participants — hours of work time used for participation in program activities, types of jobs, and general pay levels

• Think and gather information or records for expenses incurred for costs not covered by the Workplace Wellness Grant funds you have received (e.g. funds for additional consultants, vendors, facilities, equipment, and operational expenses)

• Think and gather information or records about changes to your occupational safety and health program (e.g. safety, ergonomics, occupational medicine, and industrial hygiene) and its costs going back to the time before your Workplace Wellness Grant was funded.

When, where, for how long will I be needed?

The interview will take place at your establishment, in a private setting and should last no longer than one hour.

Are there any risks to participating?

Participation in this study presents very minimal risks to the interviewee and employer.  No individuals or participant firms will be identified in published papers. 

Is my participation voluntary?

• Your full participation in this interview will be useful for us to accurately assess the economic return of the OBWC Workplace Wellness Grant Program.

• The interview is voluntary. You may choose to be interviewed or not. You may choose to answer any or all questions. You may choose not to have the interview recorded. You may stop the interview at any time for any reason without consequences to you or your organization.

Will I be reimbursed or paid?

No, you will not be paid or reimbursed for participating.

Are there other benefits?

• No individuals or participant firms will receive any benefits directly related to participation in the interview. 

• An overall benefit is that an assessment of the effectiveness of the OBWC WWGP will allow employers to plan future strategies to eliminate or reduce work-related injuries/illnesses by allowing them to assess the return-on-investment of implementing wellness programs in general and integrating occupational safety and wellness programs.

Will the information I provide be kept private?

• All the information we collect about this interview will be kept at NIOSH in a secure manner.

• Personally identifiable information will not be collected as part of this interview.

• No identifiable information for your organization will be shared as a result of this interview.

• This project is not an audit. OBWC will not be using this information to verify the accuracy of any materials that you submit as part of your participation in the Workplace Wellness Grant Program.

• Your responses during the interview will not affect your eligibility for OBWC programs or influence possibilities of future funding from the Workplace Wellness Grant Program or any other OBWC program.

Will I or anyone else receive study results?

Results of the study (in de-identified and aggregated form) will be disseminated in the scientific literature and in educational materials through NIOSH and OBWC channels (website, publications).

Who can I talk to if I have more questions?

For questions about the research study, contact the principal investigator, Alysha Meyers at [email protected] or 513-841-4208 or Carol Morrison, OBWC Division of Safety & Hygiene Manager of Outreach Programs & Services, at [email protected] or (614) 644-8225.