William G. Johnson

Overview

William G. Johnson is a labor economist at Arizona State University specializing in workers' compensation and occupational disability. He is co-author (with Richard J. Butler and Marjorie L. Baldwin) of the 1995 Industrial and Labor Relations Review study demonstrating that first return-to-work rates systematically overstate WC program success, and that employer accommodations are the dominant predictor of stable post-injury employment. He also co-authored Johnson and Ondrich (1990) on the hazards of leaving workers' compensation, a methodological precursor cited in the 1995 paper.

Key Contributions / Features

• Co-developed the four-pattern post-injury employment taxonomy (Butler, Johnson, Baldwin 1995)
• Co-author of Johnson and Ondrich (1990) on WC claim duration hazards
• Co-author of 2006 JRI paper quantifying absentee and earnings-effect productivity losses over three years post-injury
• Research focus on WC benefit structures, employer behavior, and disability management incentives

Related

• Richard J. Butler
• Marjorie L. Baldwin
• Disability Management and Return to Work
• Workers' Compensation and DI

Sources

• Butler Johnson and Baldwin 1995 — Managing Work Disability Why First Return to Work Is Not a Measure of Success
• Butler Baldwin and Johnson 2006 — The Effects of Occupational Injuries After Returns to Work Work Absences and Losses of On-the-Job Productivity