What to Expect at a Case Conference

Your WCB case worker is here to help support you during your claim and return to work. Case conferences are a helpful part of this process.

A case conference is set up by your case worker—it’s a meeting that puts you in the center of the process and gives you a voice. It includes you, your employer, and your health care provider. The goal is to bring everyone together to plan the best and safest way to help you get better and go back to work.

Why a case conference happens

When a return-to-work plan isn’t in place yet, we bring everyone together to:

• Focus on your recovery and return to work. You’ll be able to talk about anything that might be in your way and how we can help remove those barriers.
• Make sure everyone is on the same page. It ensures you, your employer, and your health care provider all have the same information and can agree on the best way forward.
• Make a clear plan. You talk to the team about your progress, and everyone discusses transitional work that might be right for you, and agrees on the next steps.

Case conferences are often scheduled within the first week after opening a claim. They usually take place around week 4. If you are already back at work, or you have a good return-to-work plan in place, we might not need the meeting.

Who will be there to support you

Case conferences usually have:

• You (the worker)
• Your employer
• Your WCB case worker
• Your health care provider

Depending on what you need, we might also invite others who can help, like your union rep, your family doctor, or a counselor/psychologist. You can also choose to invite a support person —just make a request to your case worker.

What to expect during the meeting

• Your voice is the most important one. We want to hear from you about your experience and any concerns you have
• Your WCB case worker will lead the meeting. They will keep the meeting focused on your recovery and return to work
• We'll talk about how your recovery is going. What kind of help and treatment you've been getting and how you're feeling
• We'll plan your return to work together. We'll figure out what kind of safe work you can do and create a plan that works for you
• We'll make a clear plan. By the end, everyone will know exactly what happens next

Case conferences may take place in person, by phone, or virtually.

Learn more about what to expect after you open a claim.