Grant: Healthy and Productive Work - Partnership Grants

A fundamental purpose of workers' compensation (WC) law and policy is to help people return to work after injury, to which end it creates regulatory economic drivers as incentives. However, our pilot studies, focusing on some of the most vulnerable categories of workers, suggest that such drivers often become the new purpose of the process, pre-empting the original purpose of the law. We have gathered together a multi-disciplinary team of 14 academics, 18 partners and over 20 trainees to address the overarching policy question: How can we get back to the purpose of the legislation and promote sustainable return to work (RTW) for all workers injured or made ill because of work? We focus in particular on the effectiveness of current policies as applied to three overlapping categories of potentially vulnerable workers: the precariously employed, the geographically mobile and low wage earners in Québec, Ontario, and the Maritime Provinces. We are interested in workers suffering from either physical or mental health problems attributable to the workplace and in the roles of unions and workplaces in supporting RTW in light of the policy frameworks applicable. The proposal seeks funding for 7 research programs (A-G), to examine the scope and effectiveness of regulated RTW policies and the application of those protections to three categories of workers in particular: 1) those injured while working in non-standard employment (defined) or 2) while engaging in employment-related geographic mobility or 3) full time low wage earners. When possible we will include both unionized and non-unionized workers within the purview of our research, and partners have been chosen accordingly. Programs A-G build on our pilot projects while adding new dimensions(role of workplaces and immigration issues): A: Classic legal analysis of rules governing injured workers' rights to support for sustainable return to pre-injury employment or to the broader labour market, looking specifically at WC, occupational health and safety and human rights law; qualitative studies in B Ontario and C Québec to document experiences of workers injured while precariously employed who attempt to return to pre-injury employment or return to the labour market. D: a mixed methods study to document experiences of mobile workers injured while working outside their home province who attempt to return to pre-injury employment or the broader labour market. E will develop tools for workplaces and unions to assist them with RTW of workers with physical or mental health problems. F focuses on immigration issues and the temporary foreign worker program as related to RTW in Ontario and Québec. G will synthesize the results from the six research programs, to develop recommendations for policy makers and workplace actors as to types of regulatory and policy protections, and workplace practices, that work for promoting sustainable RTW for the working populations targeted by this project. All of our studies include a gender lens, seeking to ensure that academics and partners understand how policies and practices apply to men andwomen. This approach will include a consideration of work-family balance issues, at the time of determination of suitable post-injury employment, but also consideration of the segmented labour market, and the disproportionate presence of women in part time, temporary, and low wage employment. Partners supporting this application, include governmental agencies representing the interests of employers, workers, and the protection of public health and NGOs. Their participation in research design and knowledge mobilisation will strengthen the research program and facilitate recruitment of new partners while providing economic support ($957,209) for our activities.