Chronic illnesses are becoming increasingly more frequent and pose an individual, corporate and social burden. They reduce the quality of life of those affected, lower the economic output, increase the social and health issues, and often lead to early retirement. Help for people with chronic disease often means making it possible for those affected to continue their work.

After more than thirty years as a baggage handler at Perpignan-Rivesaltes airport, Jean-Luc Egido was given a professional re-education contract in a company, intended to enable him to be reclassified due to his health problems. He is now a maintenance coordinator, a position adapted to his physical abilities and the changing needs of the airport platform.

The temporary rehousing stations set up at the Airbus site in Bouguenais, Loire-Atlantique, facilitate the return to work of employees with restricted abilities until a permanent solution can be found. The result of a multidisciplinary approach, they respond to a major problem linked to osteoarticular pathologies and are part of an overall approach to improving health at work.

Éric Cottet is in charge of the "supply and logistics" department at Vinci Facilities in Gerzat, in the Puy-de-Dôme region. Following health problems, he had to give up his former job as an electromechanic. His retraining involved many players: his company, the social service of Carsat Auvergne and the primary health insurance fund, until a redeployment solution was finally found.

The SNCF wants to put a stop to the arduous work involved in maintaining railway rolling stock. Developed with the company Ergosanté Technologie to meet the demands of the work, a modular exoskeleton, like a Swiss Army knife, is arriving in the technical centres. The aim is to preserve the physical health of the employee, without trying to turn him or her into a superwoman/superman.