Trusted research, with reach and impact
The Institute for Work & Health (IWH) is an independent, multidisciplinary, not-for-profit research organization located in Ontario, Canada. IWH conducts and mobilizes research that supports policy-makers, employers and workers in creating healthy, safe and inclusive work environments.
Latest news & findings
Precarious jobs linked to suicide, drug poisoning, and alcohol-related deaths: IWH study
In Canada and other high-income countries, rates of suicide, drug poisoning, and alcohol-attributable mortality—sometimes referred to as “deaths of despair”—have increased over time. An IWH study investigated whether job quality—measured in terms of employment stability, hours and wages—is linked to these causes of deaths.
IWH Speaker Series: Good jobs, bad jobs, and ‘deaths of despair’
Not all jobs are created equal, and research has shown that low-quality jobs can have a range of health impacts for a worker. On April 22, Dr. Faraz Vahid Shahidi will discuss a study that examines whether job quality—having a “good” or “bad” job—is linked to what some call “deaths of despair”: deaths caused by suicide, drug poisoning and alcohol.
Injured workers face mental health challenges beyond diagnosable conditions
Workers with a work-related physical injury that takes them off the job can have a wide range of mental health experiences, beyond diagnosable conditions. That’s according to an IWH study which also found that differences in workers’ mental health after an injury were linked to return-to-work outcomes. Those reporting both a mental health condition and the poorest wellbeing had longer, more expensive compensation claims.
IWH scientist honoured with lifetime achievement award
Institute for Work & Health Senior Scientist Dr. Dorcas Beaton has been named the recipient of the International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT) Lifetime Achievement Award. The IFSHT cited in particular Beaton's body of work on the DASH Outcome Measure and the QuickDASH, both developed at IWH.
IWH Speaker Series
Learn directly from IWH researchers themselves about their latest findings in health, safety and disability prevention. Coming up next:
Preventing PTSI work disability at first responder organizations: an environmental scan
Presented by Emile Tompa.
Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2025, 11:00AM EST
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Tools and guides
Integrate evidence-based policies and practices into your occupational health and safety, return-to-work and rehabilitation programs. IWH has created a number of tools and guides based on our research findings that can help improve program outcomes.
Impact case studies
Find out how IWH research is making a difference. Read our impact case studies, in which policy-makers, workplaces and other stakeholders in health, safety and disability prevention tell how IWH research helped improve their policies, programs and practices.
Research summaries
Whether it’s a policy briefing, a systematic review summary or the highlights of a specific research project, we’ve compiled a number of plain-language summaries to help you understand the research we’re doing, what we have found, and how we found it.