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
- Getting the message right: strengthening RTW communication in B.C.'s health-care sector. Funded by WorkSafeBC Innovation at Work. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Role of accommodations and communication practices in supporting the employment participation of Canadians living with disabilities. Funded by Canadian Disability Participation Project. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Strengthening disability management in Ontario’s municipal sector. Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Social Sciences Humanities Research Council Signature Initiative. Completed.
- Supporting the employment participation of Canadian young adults with chronic conditions: a systematic review. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Understanding employment transitions among people living with arthritis across the life course. Funded by Canadian Disability Participation Project, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Partnership Grant. Completed. (PI on the project)
Publications
- Alavinia SM, Jetha A, Hitzig SL, McCauley D, Routhier F, Noonan VK, Linassi G, Farahani F, Omidvar M, Jeyathevan G, Craven BC. Development of employment indicators to advance the quality of spinal cord injury rehabilitation care: SCI-High Project. Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine. 2021;1(44):S118-S133. doi:10.1080/10790268.2021.1955205.
- Cheng L, Jetha A, Cordeaux E, Lee K, Gignac MA. Workplace challenges, supports, and accommodations for people with inflammatory bowel disease: a scoping review. Disability and Rehabilitation. 2021 [epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1080/09638288.2021.1979662.
- Gignac MA, Shahidi FV, Jetha A, Kristman VL, Bowring J, Cameron JI, Tonima S, Ibrahim S. Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on health, financial worries, and perceived organizational support among people living with disabilities in Canada. Disability and Health Journal. 2021;14(4):101161. doi:10.1016/j.dhjo.2021.101161.
- Jetha A, Shamaee A, Bonaccio S, Gignac MA, Tucker LB, Tompa E, Bultmann U, Norman CD, Banks CG, Smith PM. Fragmentation in the future of work: a horizon scan examining the impact of the changing nature of work on workers experiencing vulnerability. American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 2021;64(8):649-666. doi:10.1002/ajim.23262.
- Perri M, McColl MA, Khan A, Jetha A. Scanning and synthesizing Canadian policies that address the school-to-work transition of youth and young adults with disabilities. Disability and Health Journal. 2021;14(4):101122. doi:10.1016/j.dhjo.2021.101122.
Speaker Series presentations
- Life course concepts in the work experiences of people with arthritis. IWH Speaker Series. November 22, 2016.
Interviews and articles
- Young adults with arthritis more likely to be workers, not students. AJMC.com: American Journal of Managed Care (Cranbury, NJ). January 4, 2017. Available from: http://www.ajmc.com/newsroom/young-adults-with-arthritis-more-likely-to-be-workers-not-students
- Disability leave duration rises with age, chronic conditions. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 85, Summer 2016.
- IWH Updates - Summer 2016. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 85, Summer 2016.
- Age and length of disability for eight chronic conditions. LexisNexis Legal Newsroom/Workers' Compensation Law: LexisNexis (Irvine, Calif.). April 27, 2016. Available from: https://www.lexisnexis.com/legalnewsroom/workers-compensation/b/recent-cases-news-trends-developments/archive/2016/04/27/age-and-length-of-disability-for-eight-chronic-conditions.aspx