Purpose of adaptation
As an Inclusive Workplace (IA) (Norwegian), UiO shall contribute to fulfilling the main objectives of the Inclusive Workplace Agreement:
To prevent and reduce absence due to illness, strengthen job presence and improve the working environment, as well as to prevent exclusion from and dropping out from working life.
The secondary objective of the Inclusive Workplace Agreement places emphasis on:
preventing dropping out and increasing the employment of people with a reduced functional capacity
The aim of adaptation measures is therefore:
- to make reasonable individual adaptations so that employees with a reduced functional capacity can retain or obtain suitable work whenever possible
- to utilise the remaining work capacity of employees
See also references to the regulations in the right margin.
Situations where adaptation may be appropriate
- To prevent sick leaves
- As an alternative to sick leaves
- To help employees on sick leave participate in work-related activity
- To help employees with a temporarily or permanently reduced functional capacity to participate in work-related activity
- To ensure a good transition back to work from a period of absence
Manager’s responsibility for adaptation
- Managers shall, as early as possible, make provisions so that employees with a reduced functional capacity or on sick leave are able to work.
- The manager and the employee shall pursue an open dialogue on possible solutions and enter into an agreement on which adaptation measures should be tested out, as well the duration of such measures.
- The employer’s adaptation duty is extensive. What is possible and what is reasonable is a question of judgement.
- The follow-up plan (nav.no) (Norwegian) may be a useful tool for a constructive dialogue, regardless of whether the employee is on sick leave or not.
- Contact the professional support system for advice and guidance, see contact guide.
- The manager and the employee shall maintain a regular dialogue to evaluate and possibly adjust the measures.
Employees’ duty to cooperate
- Employees are also required to contribute to the adaptation work and advise of their work capacity.
- If employees refuse to cooperate with their employer with respect adaptation “without any valid reason”, this may have several consequences. Passivity on the part of the employee may reduce the scope of the adaptation duty.
Examples of adaptation measures
The selection of adaptation measures must always be assessed individually and agreed between the manager and the employee in each individual case. Here are a few examples:
- Changes to routines or the distribution of work
- Changes to working hours
- Concretisation of and/or changes to work tasks
- Training, skills development or retraining
- Changes to responsibilities and authorities
- Technical aids
- Adjustable working height
- Adaptation of furniture, equipment and machinery
- Physical adaptation and structural changes
- Physically work somewhere other than the workplace
- Measures related to organisational and psycho-social factors at the workplace
Grant schemes provided by NAV
NAV offers a number of grant schemes for adaptation. The Occupational Health Service Unit (OHSU) can assist with advice and guidance in connection with the selection of a scheme and the formulation of applications.
Prevention and adaptation grants
- When appropriate and necessary adaptation for an employee results in additional expenses or additional efforts, as an Inclusive Workplace, UiO can apply to NAV for inclusion grants for, among other things:
- training for new work tasks, adaptation, courses, short-term training measures or work training
- transport to and from the workplace when adapted work is only possible at a workplace within the organisation other than where the employee regularly works
- reimbursement of additional expenses for extra personnel when employees must be relieved or tasks must be changed when they are not on sick leave or in combination with graded sick leave
- purchase or lease of items, work aids or other physical equipment not covered by Section 10-5 of the National Insurance Act
- The employer must submit an application for an iinclusion grant (nav.no) (Norwegian) to NAV before the planned measure or purchase is carried out. Note: NAV does not give grants for measures that have been implemented without a decision or before a decision has been made.
- Read more about adaptation (nav.no) (Norwegian).
Other grant schemes
- NAV also has a number of other instruments that can be used in connection with the prevention and follow-up of sick leaves and adaptation for employees with a reduced functional capacity. Examples:
- reading and secretarial assistance
- travel grants
- interpreters
- technical adaptation and aids through the NAV Technical Aids Service
- Read more about NAV’s adaptation measures (nav.no) (Norwegian).