ABSTRACT
Rehabilitation of impaired workers in an economic environment which is increasingly characterised by “jobless growth” is an urgent problem. Both for social and financial reasons most disability insurance schemes do not only aim at income maintenance but also at the rehabilitation of disabled workers. The cost-benefit framework helps to unravel the determinants of the firm’s willingness to engage in rehabilitation by accomodating workplaces or offering alternative employment within the firm. To prevent benefit dependency and to reduce benefit durations the gatekeepers of disability insurance (DI)-programmes prescribe rehabilitation. Whether these rehabilitation services are provided by the DI-administration itself or by external agencies differs from country to country. For lack of appropriate incentives the Dutch DI programme has become difficult to control. Workers use it as an alternative for the hazards of labour force participation and employers use it as a tool for personnel management.
