Dr. Arif Jetha
Dr. Arif Jetha is a scientist at the Institute for Work & Health. He is also an assistant professor (status-only) at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health.
Jetha earned his PhD in behavioural sciences and public health at the University of Toronto, and an MSc in health community and development from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He also held post-doctoral fellowships at the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety and the Institute for Work & Health.
Jetha’s program of research aims at understanding how the future of work will affect the employment of vulnerable workers. He is also interested in understanding life course differences in the labour market experiences of youth and young adults living with disabling health conditions with a focus on the school-to-work transition.
Jetha's research takes a systems perspective to understand the role of policy-level factors and organizational conditions in the prevention and management of work disability. Jetha uses mixed-methods research approaches to pursue his research program and produce findings that are relevant and usable for diverse stakeholders. He is currently the recipient of the Stars Career Development Award from the Arthritis Society.
“For millennial young adults, experiences during the early career phase are critical and can shape long-term labour market and health outcomes. Young adults living with a chronic disease or disability face a system of factors that create challenges to employment participation that extend across the working life course and adversely impact health. I am motivated to conduct research that contributes to the development of policy and programs that promote early and sustained involvement in employment.”
— Dr. Arif Jetha
Research areas
Projects
- Accommodating and Communicating about Episodic Disabilities (ACED): A partnership to deliver workplace resources to sustain employment of people with chronic, episodic conditions. Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada Signature Initiative. Ongoing.
- Centre for Research on Work Disability Policy: Envisioning the future of disability policy in Canada. Funded by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Ongoing.
- Conceal or reveal? Facilitators and barriers to older workers' communication of accommodation needs. Funded by Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada. Ongoing.
- Future-focused job accommodation practices for the school-to-work transition. Funded by Accessibility Standards Canada (ASC). Ongoing. (PI on the project)
- Future-proofing young Canadians with disabilities for the changing labour market. Funded by Tri-Agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada). Ongoing. (PI on the project)
Publications
- Jetha A, Tucker L, Chen C, Gignac MA. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the employment of Canadian young adults with rheumatic disease: longitudinal survey findings. Arthritis Care and Research. 2021 epub ahead of print. doi:10.1002/acr.24617.
- Jetha A, Shamaee A. Fragmentation dans l'avenir du travail. Institute for Work & Health; 2021.
- Jetha A, Shamaee A. Fragmentation in the future of work. Institute for Work & Health; 2021.
- Gignac MA, Bowring J, Jetha A, Beaton DE, Breslin FC, Franche RL, Irvin E, MacDermid JC, Shaw WS, Smith PM, Thompson A, Tompa E, Van Eerd D, Saunders R. Disclosure, privacy and workplace accommodation of episodic disabilities: organizational perspectives on disability communication-support processes to sustain employment. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation. 2021;31(1):153-165. doi:10.1007/s10926-020-09901-2.
- Jetha A, Johnson SR, Gignac MA. Unmet workplace support needs and lost productivity of workers with systemic sclerosis: a path analysis study. Arthritis Care and Research. 2021;73(3):423-431. doi:10.1002/acr.24123.
Speaker Series presentations
- Fragmentation in the future of work: Exploring the impact of the changing nature of work on vulnerable workers . IWH Speaker Series. February 23, 2021.
- Promoting labour market transitions for young adults with chronic disabling conditions: a systematic review. IWH Speaker Series. November 27, 2018.
- Life course concepts in the work experiences of people with arthritis. IWH Speaker Series. November 22, 2016.
Interviews and articles
- Education, type of work lessen pandemic job loss in youths with rheumatic diseases. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 104, Spring 2021.
- Nine trends that will likely shape future of work for groups of vulnerable workers. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 104, Spring 2021.
- What employers can learn from the NBA about returning to work amid COVID-19. The Conversation. April 5, 2021. Available from: https://theconversation.com/what-employers-can-learn-from-the-nba-about-returning-to-work-amid-covid-19-157022
- Precarity more likely for older, new workers with disabilities. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 103, Winter 2021.
- Canadian workers aren’t too worried about robots taking their jobs, web survey finds. Toronto Star. December 14, 2020. Available from: https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/2020/09/16/canadian-workers-arent-too-worried-about-robots-taking-their-jobs-web-survey-finds.html