Financial security & employment experiences
Under this theme, we will study the employment experiences and financial security of injured workers over their lifetime. According to records from the Ministry of Community and Social Services, almost 5,000 recipients of workers' compensation were also receiving social assistance in 2000. However, little is known about the sources of income for injured workers and how fair and adequate wage replacement benefits are over the long term. Even less is known about the quality of work experiences, although research suggests that people with disabilities are more vulnerable to unstable or precarious employment experiences.
There are few studies on whether injured workers have been able to succeed financially in the labour market. The studies that do exist suggest the following:
All of these studies are based on workers filing claims, yet research suggests that 40 per cent of workers sustaining a work injury do not file a claim.
In Phase 1 (years one to three), five projects are planned. New projects will be added in Phase 2 (years four and five).
Phase 1 Projects
Concepts of compensation adequacy
Inventory/catalogue of data sources
Study of barriers to claims filing
Labour-market earnings and financial security
Literature review of research on labour-market experiences and financial security
Role of Health Care Providers in Complex Claims
A Socio-Legal Ethnography of the Experiences of Injured Workers with Deeming and Re-Employment
Development of a Green Light and Red Flag Toolkit for Persistent Claims
Phase 2 Research
The research for the fourth and fifth years will focus on using data sources identified by the catalogue of surveys, primary data collected from the longitudinal survey undertaken by the Alliance's Health and Well-Being group, and a linkage of administrative data that is currently in the process of being completed.