Longstanding work and health issues
Many longstanding issues related to work injuries and their consequences continue to negatively affect the lives and health of workers. For example, musculoskeletal injuries remain the leading cause of disability and discomfort among Canadian workers. Rates of workers’ compensation claims for traumatic fatalities have remained constant for the past decade. Persons with disabilities continue to be employed at lower rates, or in poorer work conditions, than those who do not live with a disability. Our research aims to provide new knowledge to help regulators and workplaces address persistent occupational health and safety (OHS) risks, workers’ compensation challenges and barriers to labour market inclusion.
Latest findings
![Silhouettes of construction workers against an orange sky](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/sun_construction_silhouette.jpg?h=f45fdf85&itok=1lesrePC)
Costs of providing UV ray protection at job sites outweighed by averted skin cancers
Ultraviolet radiation due to sun exposure is one of the most common causes of work-related cancer in Ontario. A new study by IWH examines the costs and benefits of providing protective clothing and shade shelter to avert work-related skin cancer over 30 years.![The back of a male worker, hauling a load in a warehouse setting](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/warehouse_haul_load.jpg?h=81ed7793&itok=z6ZUk1LB)
Examining the link between leisure-time exercise and physically demanding work on diabetes risk
We've known of the health benefits of doing at least 150 minutes of exercise a week. Is exercise beneficial in lowering one's risks of diabetes, no matter how much one moves on the job? That's the question this study sets out to answer.![Masked restaurant worker prepares take-out food orders](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/covid_restaurant_worker.jpg?h=388e26ef&itok=3F1lZ79C)
What research can do: Workplace COVID outbreaks reported by Ontario public health account for one in 20 cases in working-age adults
In the second wave of the pandemic so far, outbreaks in essential service workplaces (excluding health-care, congregate living and educational settings) have contributed just over five per cent of all cases among working-age adults in Ontario.Featured impact case study
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