Newcomers and work
Immigrant workers account for much of the labour force growth in Canada. IWH research seeks to understand the work experiences of recent immigrants or newcomers to Canada. The focus of this research includes the barriers newcomers face in understanding and accessing their occupational health and safety and workers’ compensation rights and responsibilities, and the tools and programs needed to help ensure they can be safe and productive members of the Canadian labour force.
Featured
![Two male workers assemble vegetable crates in a warehouse](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_6_col_wide/public/iwh/images/newcomers_warehouse_crates.jpg?h=51a72048&itok=Lefx0cIf)
At Work article
Employers struggle to provide newcomers with OHS training, support: IWH study
Employers are responsible for providing OHS training and support to keep workers safe. When it comes to workers who are new to Canada, workplaces face particular challenges following through on this responsibility.
Published: November 29, 2022
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IWH Speaker Series
Safe work integration of newcomers: Employer perspectives
Published: October 13, 2020
![Workers of various ethnicities pose happily with their work team](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/work_team_various_ethnicities.jpg?h=e865d0b4&itok=YMmZ378j)
Impact case study
Concerns about newcomers’ safety at work lead organizations to IWH toolkit
Organizations working with recent immigrants are incorporating parts of the Institute's toolkit for teaching newcomers about workplace health and safety into their programming. Organizations in Ontario, Alberta, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, and even as far away as Australia, say the resource is just what they were looking for.
Published: December 2017
![Canadian Occupational Safety logo](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/canadian_occupational_safety_logo.png?h=84071268&itok=zebLs2Ra)
IWH in the media
Recent immigrants, refugees largely unaware of OHS: Researchers
When immigrants and refugees come to Canada, they are handed a 140-page document that contains only one small paragraph about employee rights. Unfortunately, this might be the only OHS exposure these workers receive, writes Amanda Silliker, reporting on an Institute for Work & Health research project.
Published: Canadian Occupational Safety, November 2017
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series
Safe employment integration of recent immigrants and refugees
Settlement and integration involve helping recent immigrants and refugees find work and become economically solvent. Many newcomers end up in survival jobs that expose them to hazards and are precarious and physically demanding. In this plenary, presenters Dr. Agnieszka Kosny, Dr. Basak Yanar and Dina Al-khooly summarize a recent study investigating how newcomers come to understand their rights and where there are gaps in resources and training.
Published: October 2017
Project
Project
Information and resource needs of newcomers to help ensure their safe integration into the labour market
This project looked at the needs of recent immigrants and refugees to Ontario to help ensure they can safely integrate into the Canadian labour market.
Status: Completed 2017
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series
Measuring OHS vulnerability among new immigrants
While previous research has identified that recent immigrants are at increased risk of work injury and illness, little is known about the specific mechanisms that lead to this elevated risk. In this plenary, Institute for Work & Health (IWH) research associate Morgan Lay presents preliminary results from a recent IWH collaboration with settlement agencies to better understand the workplace and social contexts that lead to increased risk of work injury among new immigrants.
Published: May 2016
![Young man does sanding work at machine](/sites/iwh/files/styles/bootstrap_4_col_widescreen/public/iwh/images/factory_young_sanding.jpeg?h=ba4ddb53&itok=S9ql3MH0)
Impact case study
WCB adapts toolkit for newcomers to Manitoba context
The toolkit, called Prevention is the Best Medicine, hopes to bridge the knowledge gap among newcomers of OHS and workers' compensation issues.
Published: April 2014
Project report
Project report
Delicate dances: new immigrants' experiences after a work-related injury
This is a plain-language report summarizing the findings of an Institute for Work & Health study that explored the experiences of recent immigrants who were injured on the job.
Published: July 2011
At Work article
At Work article
Immigrant worker safety: IWH develops OHS information tool for newcomers
Institute for Work & Health researchers are helping fill a gap in the occupational health and safety system: the need for information tailored to immigrant workers, delivered to them through the services they regularly access at the community level.
Published: May 2011
At Work article
At Work article
Over-qualified immigrants at risk of poorer mental health
Many recent immigrants end up in jobs for which they are over-qualified, putting them at risk of poorer mental health within a relatively short period of time, according to a recent study from the Institute for Work & Health.
Published: May 2011
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series
A national scan of safety resources for recent immigrants entering the Canadian workforce
In this presentation, Dr. Agnieszka Kosny and Marni Lifshen talk about a project that examined the services, programs and resources available to newcomers to Canada that focus on employment standards, occupational health and safety and workers’ compensation. They discuss trends in the types of resources available, identify important gaps, and highlight case studies of programs that present interesting opportunities for providing this information to newcomers.
Published: May 2011