You finally get a set of restrictions from the treating physician, build a light-duty position around them and offer it to your injured employee. Then the answer comes back: no. A refusal can feel like a dead end, but in Ohio it may actually strengthen your position on the claim if you handle the next few steps carefully. Here is what to sort out before you treat that refusal as a win.
Make sure the job matches the employee’s medical work restrictions
Compare the offered duties against the restrictions in the claim file. Ohio’s rules define suitable employment as work within the employee’s physical capabilities, and those capabilities include any psychiatric condition allowed in the claim. A job that ignores a lifting limit or sits far from the employee’s home gives the other side an easy argument.
Put the light-duty offer in writing
An oral offer is allowed, but it will not carry you far in a dispute. If the employee turns down a verbal offer and you plan to move to end temporary total disability compensation, state rules on job offers require a written offer delivered at least 48 hours before you begin those proceedings. That writing must name the position, describe the duties and spell out the physical demands.
Ask why the employee is refusing the job
A refusal is rarely simple stubbornness. Transportation gaps, a conflicting note from a new attending physician or confusion about pay all come up regularly. Asking gives you facts you can act on, and it sometimes resolves the problem without any filing. It also shows good faith, which matters when a hearing officer later weighs whether your offer was reasonable.
Keep a record of the offer and refusal
Documentation decides close cases. Keep the written offer, proof of delivery, the restrictions behind it and any response from the employee. If you file a motion to stop compensation, a copy of the written offer must accompany that filing. Steady records carry weight later when you are defending a workers’ compensation claim through months of disputed benefits.
Check how the refusal may affect benefits
A refusal does not automatically stop payments. Ohio’s workers’ compensation statute says employers do not have to provide payment for periods when they make work available within the employee’s physical capabilities but an employer cannot unilaterally stop payments. The employer will have to file a motion to terminate temporary total disability compensation and defend the job offer at hearing. A hearing officer may end temporary total disability compensation after finding that the employee received a good faith written job offer of suitable employment, and may declare an overpayment for periods already paid. Much depends on the medical evidence and the strength of your offer.
Craft a careful response after the refusal
Treat the refusal as the start of a process rather than the end of one. The next step may be adjusting the job, seeking updated medical information or moving forward with the workers’ compensation process. What matters is choosing the response that fits the facts rather than reacting to the refusal alone. A measured approach can also help the employer handle similar return-to-work situations more consistently in the future.