From Participant to Passenger: Workers’ Experiences of Recovery During a Workers’ Compensation Claim

Abstract Background Social insurance systems provide essential financial support to cover living expenses and medical treatment needs during times of work incapacity. However, many ill and injured workers experience the administrative processes involved in accessing these systems as difficult to navigate, which can stifle recovery and slow return to work. The present study centres workers’ lived experiences to better understand facilitators and barriers to recovery, and to identify solutions grounded in workers’ perspectives. Methods Twenty Australian workers with work-related injuries, health, and mental health conditions completed an online interview between February and August 2024. Thematic analysis was used to interpret and group participant responses. Results Three themes describing recovery experiences emerged, whereby each theme described a facilitator and a barrier subtheme. Additionally, four solution themes emerged, emphasising the importance of shifting systems towards including workers in decision-making steps, increasing transparency and ease of claim processing, and reducing financial strain. Conclusions Findings are discussed in light of Administrative Burden Theory (ABT). ABT introduces concepts of learning, compliance, and psychological costs that ill and injured workers bear while engaging with social insurance systems. ABT proposes that these costs are not equally distributed, often disadvantaging those with fewer resources or support networks. We argue that ABT provides a useful framework through which to understand ill and injured workers’ experiences with workers’ compensation, and that it provides mechanisms to explain workers’ suggested solutions.