Mental health in the workplace

Workplaces play a dual role in the area of mental health. On the one hand, they can be a stressful environment that contributes to mental health problems among workers. On the other hand, they can play an important part in helping to detect and manage mental health problems when they arise among workers, and in ensuring the healthy recovery and return of workers who are off work due to a mental health issue. IWH research in this area helps paint a clearer picture of the prevalence of mental health problems among workers, the types of labour force and workplace factors that may contribute to poor mental health, and the workplace-based and system prevention efforts that can help improve the mental health of workers and ensure they have the proper supports when needed.

Featured

A woman dressed in work attire looks out a window with her arms folded.
At Work article

What is the impact of depression on years of employment among working-age adults?

If someone experiences depression, what is the impact on the length of their future working life? It depends on how, and when, someone experiences depression. An IWH study found five trajectories of depression in working adults, each with varied impacts on the length of their working life.
Published: September 20, 2023
A police officer with their back turned faces a group of people walking around.
At Work article

Police service members face challenges with accommodation, communication and trust when returning to work after an injury

A recent IWH study examined the experiences of sworn and civilian Ontario police service members returning to their jobs after experiencing an injury or illness. It found their RTW challenges revolved around five main themes.
Published: September 18, 2023
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series

The working life expectancy of Americans experiencing depression

Understanding the impact of depression on employment is critical to informing welfare, health, and social services policy. In this presentation, Dr. Kathleen Dobson discusses research on working life expectancy—that is, the number of years an individual can expect to work before permanently leaving the labour force. Dobson talks about the importance of working life expectancy, and shares novel findings from the U.S. about how different courses of depression throughout individuals’ working years impact their working life expectancy from age 30 to 60.
Published: November 2023
A woman dressed in work attire looks out a window with her arms folded.
At Work article

What is the impact of depression on years of employment among working-age adults?

If someone experiences depression, what is the impact on the length of their future working life? It depends on how, and when, someone experiences depression. An IWH study found five trajectories of depression in working adults, each with varied impacts on the length of their working life.
Published: September 2023
A police officer with their back turned faces a group of people walking around.
At Work article

Police service members face challenges with accommodation, communication and trust when returning to work after an injury

A recent IWH study examined the experiences of sworn and civilian Ontario police service members returning to their jobs after experiencing an injury or illness. It found their RTW challenges revolved around five main themes.
Published: September 2023
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IWH in the media

Workplace health conversations are awkward: A new tool is here to help.

Todd Humber reports on discussions about chronic health accommodations at work, profiles the role of the Job Demands and Accommodation Planning Tool (JDAPT).
Published: OHS Canada, April 2023
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series

Unveiling the JDAPT: A new interactive tool to identify work-related support strategies for workers with chronic conditions and disability

Many workers with chronic physical and mental health conditions struggle when deciding whether to seek support from their workplace. The Job Demands and Accommodation Planning Tool (JDAPT) is designed to help address the complexity of disclosure decisions. Developed as part of a large research partnership, the JDAPT is an online, interactive tool that guides users through a series of simple questions about their job demands, job tasks and working conditions. In this presentation, Dr. Monique Gignac describes the JDAPT tool, its development, as well as data from two studies on the tool. She discusses the JDAPT’s potential to help workers by focusing on work solutions, not medical diagnoses and symptoms.
Published: March 2023
close up of person using laptop at home
Tools and guides

Job Demands and Accommodation Planning Tool (JDAPT)

This tool identifies job demands that are difficult for a worker with a chronic, potentially episodic, health condition and suggests personalized accommodation ideas tailored to these demands that can help the worker continue to work comfortably, safety and productively.
Published: March 2023
A group of young adults look into the camera
At Work article

One in four young adults in the U.S. have poor mental health—and the lowest earnings among their peers

About one in four young adults in the U.S have poor mental health from their mid-teens to mid-30s. They also have the lowest earnings of their same-age peers. That’s according to a new study, conducted by IWH associate scientist, using data not available in Canada.
Published: February 2023