Uncovering the impact of a depressive episode on employment earnings of Canadian workers

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Online

Kathleen Dobson
Institute for Work & Health

Despite much attention being paid to the employment outcomes of Canadians experiencing depression, we still know little about the long-term impact of depression on their work earnings. In this presentation, IWH Associate Scientist Kathleen Dobson shares findings from her novel study using linked administrative tax data and population health data to uncover the impact of a depressive episode on employment earnings over a decade.

Dobson's study draws on the Canadian Community Health Survey (2003 to 2014), which was linked to administrative tax records (1997 to 2016). She describes an innovative matching method to account for systematic differences between study participants with and without depression. She also discusses the implications of this work.

About presenter

Kathleen Dobson is an associate scientist at the Institute for Work & Health. Dobson holds an MSc in health research methodology from McMaster University and is completing a PhD in epidemiology from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Her research explores the interplay of health, socioeconomic attainment and work conditions using complex observational data and longitudinal methods. Her current area of focus is the prevalence and economic consequences of mental illness and mental health among Canadian labour force participants.

About IWH Speaker Series

The IWH Speaker Series brings you the latest findings from work and health researchers from the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) and beyond. For those unable to attend, the recorded webinar of most presentations in the IWH Speaker Series are made available on its web page within a week of the event.