1. Events

IWH Speaker Series

The IWH Speaker Series is your opportunity to learn about the latest findings from work and health researchers from the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) and beyond. These live-stream webinars, which typically take place on Tuesdays from 11.00 a.m. to noon EST, allow you to hear about new research directly from the scientist(s) involved, and give you a chance to ask questions about the meaning and interpretation of the findings. For those unable to attend, recorded webinars of most IWH Speaker Series presentations are made available on the related web page within a week of the event.

Upcoming webinars

21 Apr 2026

How businesses get their start in workplace health and safety: implications for research and policy

Lynda Robson, Institute for Work & Health

New businesses are too seldom the focus of occupational health and safety (OHS) research even though they may present risks to worker health and safety. To better understand how new businesses start engaging with OHS, a study team conducted a survey of owners of new Ontario businesses from diverse sectors. In this presentation, Dr. Lynda Robson shares results from the study. She discusses what study participants reported about their OHS management activities, OHS information sources, experiences with the Ontario OHS system, barriers to taking OHS actions, and preferences for receiving OHS information. The presentation also highlights factors associated with OHS management initiation, the value of applying a research-based behaviour change framework to the study, and the implications of the study for research and policy.

Recorded webinars

24 Feb 2026

Using cannabis to manage symptoms of work-related injuries: Experiences of injured workers in Ontario

Nancy Carnide, Institute for Work & Health

Governments around the world are increasingly making cannabis legal for medical and non-medical uses, and public interest in the therapeutic benefits of cannabis continues to grow. Pain, sleep difficulties, and poor mental health are among the most cited reasons for using cannabis therapeutically; they're also symptoms that are commonly associated with work-related injuries. Despite these parallels, little is known about workers’ experiences using cannabis after a work-related injury. In this presentation, Dr. Nancy Carnide will share findings from a series of qualitative interviews with workers who have sustained a work-related injury. She discusses their decisions to use cannabis, their perceptions of its impacts, and their experiences using cannabis while returning to work.

27 Jan 2026

Understanding PTSI program implementation processes in Alberta first responder organizations

Dwayne Van Eerd, Institute for Work & Health

Post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI) are common among police, firefighters and paramedics, leading to high rates of work disability in first responder organizations. Growing recognition of this problem has led these organizations to develop and implement PTSI disability prevention policies and programs. In this presentation, Dr. Dwayne Van Eerd shares findings from interviews conducted with first responders in Alberta. He discusses themes that emerged from implementation experiences, highlighting successes and challenges.

18 Nov 2025

AI adoption at work: Which worker and occupation groups are most likely to be affected?

Arif Jetha, Institute for Work & Health

The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) within Canada’s labour market can drive innovation and raise productivity. But the benefits of AI may vary according to the characteristics of workers and their occupations. In the absence of direct measures, examining the impact of AI on work and workers can be challenging. In this presentation, Dr. Arif Jetha discusses the use of different measures of “AI exposure” as a tool to study the technology’s impact on different groups of workers, who vary according to gender and educational attainment. The study also describes differences in the impact of AI according to occupational differences including job skill requirements and job quality. Insights from this presentation can be used to direct research attention and strategic responses towards occupations and worker groups most likely to be affected by AI.

21 Oct 2025

Engaging employees in wellness: Insights from workplace champions

Aviroop Biswas, Institute for Work & Health

Champions are often cited as important facilitators of employee participation in workplace wellbeing activities. However, little is known about their experiences or the approaches they take to engage colleagues in wellbeing efforts. Understanding how formal and informal champions carry out these roles is essential to appreciating their potential impact and determining what supports are needed to strengthen their contributions to workplace wellbeing. In this presentation, Dr. Aviroop Biswas shares findings from a qualitative study of workplace wellbeing champions across Canada. The study explored how formal and informal champions promote wellbeing within their organizations—as well as their motivations, the activities and strategies they use, and the successes and challenges they face in engaging peers across diverse organizational contexts.

23 Sep 2025

Beyond employment rates: The long-term work experiences of Canadians with mental health conditions

Kathleen Dobson, Institute for Work & Health

People living with a mental health condition often face a lower likelihood of employment than those without such conditions. Yet in Canada, we know far less about the diversity of employment experiences for people with mental health conditions, and how these experiences change over time. In this presentation, Dr. Kathleen Dobson examines the long-term employment trajectories of Canadians living with common mental disorders, severe mental disorders, and substance use disorders. Drawing on 25 years of linked survey and tax data, she explores whether, compared to those without these conditions, people with these conditions are more likely to exit the workforce early, experience unstable employment, or sustain work across their prime working years. 

See all past presentations