Dr. Arif Jetha
Dr. Arif Jetha is associate scientific director and scientist at the Institute for Work & Health. He is also an associate 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 sociopolitical, technological, environmental and economic changes that characterize the future of work affect the health and employment participation of vulnerable workers. He is specifically interested in the implications of artificial intelligence (AI) on the health, safety and well-being of workers. Also, Jetha leads research on how changing working conditions can shape the labour market experiences of young workers and persons living with disabilities at the early career phase and across the life course.
To pursue his research program, Jetha takes a systems perspective and uses a mixed-methods research approach. He collaborates closely with diverse research partners to produce findings that can inform policy and practice. Jetha is currently the recipient of the Stars Career Development Salary Award from the Arthritis Society.
“The world of work is changing at a rapid rate. Studying the future of work allows me to understand the emerging challenges facing workers and create an evidence base that can be used to inform the design of policies and programs that are resilient to change and protect the most vulnerable.”
— Dr. Arif Jetha
Projects
- Future-focused job accommodation practices for the school-to-work transition. Funded by Accessibility Standards Canada (Government of Canada). Ongoing. (PI on the project)
- Future-proofing young Canadians with disabilities for the changing labour market. Funded by New Frontiers in Research Fund (a Tri-Agency Program—CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC). Ongoing. (PI on the project)
- Inclusive Design for Employment Access (IDEA): A social innovation lab to increase demand-side capacity to employ persons with disabilities in Canada. Funded by New Frontiers in Research Fund (a Tri-Agency Program—CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC). Ongoing.
- Inclusive Design for Employment Access (IDEA): Transition to work and career development. Funded by MLITSD, New Frontiers in Research Fund (a Tri-Council initiative among CIHR, SSHRC and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council) . Ongoing. (PI on the project)
- Intelligent machines and human worker inequities: examining the implications of AI in the workplace. Funded by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC); Future Skills Centre. Ongoing. (PI on the project)
Publications
- Shahidi FV, Jetha A, Kristman VL, Smith PM, Gignac MA. The employment quality of persons with disabilities: findings from a national survey. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation. 2023;33(4):785-795. doi:10.1007/s10926-023-10113-7.
- Jetha A. Three scenarios of a future working world [for young adults living with a disability]. Institute for Work & Health; 2023.
- Martin Ginis KA, Jetha A, Gignac MA. Experiential aspects of employment and their relationship with work outcomes: a cross-sectional study using a novel measure of participation in workers with and without physical disabilities. Disability and Health Journal. 2023;16(3):101448. doi:10.1016/j.dhjo.2023.101448.
- Jetha A, Tucker L, Shahidi FV, Backman C, Kristman VL, Hazel EM, Perlin L, Proulx L, Chen C, Gignac MA. How does job insecurity and workplace activity limitations relate to rheumatic disease symptom trajectories in young adulthood? A longitudinal study. Arthritis Care & Research. 2023;75(1):14-21. doi:10.1002/acr.24982.
- Di Giuseppe G, Pagalan L, Jetha A, Pechlivanoglou P, Pole JD. Financial toxicity among adolescent and young adult cancer survivors: a systematic review of educational attainment, employment, and income. Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology. 2023;183:103914. doi:10.1016/j.critrevonc.2023.103914.
Speaker Series presentations
- Life course concepts in the work experiences of people with arthritis. IWH Speaker Series. November 22, 2016.
Interviews and articles
- Coronavirus: The risks to essential workers with hidden health conditions. The Conversation. April 15, 2020. Available from: https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-the-risks-to-essential-workers-with-hidden-health-conditions-135819
- Despite social distancing, many front-line public workers feel the strain. The Globe and Mail. March 20, 2020. Available from: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/careers/article-despite-social-distancing-many-front-line-public-workers-feel-the/
- The future of work will hit vulnerable people the hardest. The Conversation. March 2, 2020.
- What’s causing the bottleneck in disability management?. Canadian HR Reporter. February 24, 2020. Available from: https://www.hrreporter.com/focus-areas/wellness-mental-health/whats-causing-the-bottleneck-in-disability-management/326532
- Grant round-up: Anticipating future risks among externally funded projects under way at IWH. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 99, Winter 2020.