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BACKGROUND: Working and volunteering in the reopening stages of the COVID-19 pandemic has looked different depending on the location, employment sector and nature of the job. Although researchers have begun exploring the impacts on adults, little is known about what the transition to a 'new normal' in the reopening stages has been like for youth, especially those with disabilities. OBJECTIVE: To explore and compare the experiences and perspectives of youth with and without disabilities who were working, volunteering or seeking work during the re-opening stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. METHODS: We used a qualitative design involving semi-structured interviews with 16 youth (seven with a disability, nine without), aged 15–29 (mean 22 years). Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: Five main themes were identified: (1) Mixed views on being onsite in the reopening stages; (2) Mixed views on remaining remote; (3) Hybrid model as the best of both worlds; (4) Mixed views on COVID-19 workplace safety in the reopening stages; and (5) Hopes, dreams and advice for the future. Apart from the first main theme, there were more similarities than differences between youth with and without disabilities. CONCLUSION: Our study highlights that youth encountered various work and volunteer arrangements during the reopening stages of the pandemic, and the personal preferences for particular models depend largely on their employment sector. The areas of agreement among youth highlight some longer-term impacts of the pandemic shutdowns and point to the need for greater mental health and career supports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workplace violence against nurses is a significant global occupational health problem, with incidents of violence increasing in frequency since the COVID-19 pandemic began. In this article, we provide a review of recent legislative amendments meant to bolster workplace safety in health care in Canada, analyze legal cases where nurses were the victims of violence, and discuss what these legal reforms and decisions reveal about how nurses' work is treated within the Canadian legal system. Under criminal law, the limited number of cases we could find with oral or written sentencing decisions show that, historically, the fact a victim was a nurse was not always considered an aggravating factor on sentencing. Recent legislative amendments make this a specified aggravating factor and it is important to track the impact of these amendments when judges exercise their discretion in sentencing. Under employment law, it appears that, despite the government's efforts to increase the deterrence factor under legislation with significantly increased fines for employers who fail to protect their employees from injury, courts remain reluctant to impose such sanctions. In these cases, it is also important to track the impact of harsher penalties. We conclude that combating the widespread normalization of workplace violence in health care, and specifically against nurses, is acutely needed to help ensure that these ongoing legal reforms aimed at improving the safety of health workers are effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Political Science Review is the property of Canadian Political Science Review and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: Nearly a quarter-million people work in universities in Canada, making it one of the fastest-growing sectors. Although each university provides occupational health and safety services and training programmes to their employees, there have been no studies conducted on the impact of such programmes on employees- knowledge, attitude and behaviour. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of dissemination of information of workplace health and safety programmes to workers at a Canadian university. Methods: The study compared two cross-sectional online surveys of employees of a Canadian university regarding workplace health and safety with a previously conducted cross-sectional study and thematic analysis of key informant interviews to address the issues raised in the surveys. Results: Participation in health and safety presentations could enhance understanding and practices of safety. Age, employment status and duration of employment were associated with the levels of knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of employees and graduate students. The key informant interviews highlighted some new initiatives such as the establishment of workplace health and safety committees in all university buildings; the development of a safety app and health and safety management system; routine annual inspections of all university building offices and laboratories; new orientation for undergraduate students where general safety rules are described. Discussion: University should have regular presentations on the available health and safety programmes and should increase the number of safety training programmes and keep track of the employees that have not received any training, particularly for those working in hazardous environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After Canada's laws criminalising sex work were struck down by the Supreme Court for violating sex workers' rights and new end-demand legislation was passed in 2014. These new laws however continue to criminalise sex work third parties (i.e. venue owners/managers) who gain material benefits, despite evidence that managed in-call venues can provide important protections for sex workers. As part of a longstanding community-based study in Vancouver, this analysis drew on 25 in-depth interviews with third parties who provide services for indoor sex workers. We explored how end-demand third party criminalisation shapes indoor sex workers' working conditions, health and safety. We found that most third parties were women and current/former sex workers, problematising assumptions of third parties as exploitative male "pimps". Third parties provided client screening, security and sexual health resources for sex workers, yet end-demand laws restricted condom availability and access to police protections in case of violence, thereby undermining sex workers' health and safety. Our findings highlight that third party criminalisation under end-demand legislation reproduces the unsafe working conditions under the previous laws deemed unconstitutional by Canada's highest court. Legislative reforms to decriminalise all aspects of the sex industry, including sex workers' right to work with third parties, are urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Dental Hygiene is the property of Canadian Dental Hygienists Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective To investigate whether differences in methods of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) awareness training result in differences in worker awareness of rights and responsibilities and worker empowerment to participate in injury prevention. Methods Repeated cross-sectional surveys were conducted on 3911 working adults employed in two Canadian provinces – British Columbia and Ontario. Participants were asked if they had participated in OHS awareness training in the preceding 12 months. Using information on type of training received respondents were grouped into those receiving active and passive training. Adequacy of awareness of workplace hazards and empowerment to participate in injury prevention were measured by six and five statements respectively. Multivariable logistic regressions examined association between type of training and awareness and empowerment outcomes. Results In multivariable models workers who reported receiving OHS awareness training reported higher levels of OHS awareness compared to those who did not receive training, with the relationship being stronger for active training (OR = 2.87, 1.96–4.21), and active and passive training (OR = 2.22, 1.66–2.98), compared to passive only training (OR = 1.52, 1.16–1.99). Only combined active and passive training was associated with higher empowerment (OR = 1.70, 1.33–2.17), with estimates for other types of training being close to the null. Conclusion Exposure to OHS awareness training is associated with higher OHS awareness among workers in a broad range of occupations. Mode of training is important, with more active training associated with stronger impacts on awareness than passive training methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. The purpose of this particular study was to test a newly created instrument in describing the facilitators and barriers to occupational health and safety in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Ontario, Canada. Methods. A cross-sectional design was used to identify the occupational health and safety culture of SMEs in public and private sectors in Ontario. Results. A total of 153 questionnaires were completed. The majority of respondents were female (84%) with a mean age of 49.8 years (SD 10.6). Seventy-four percent were supervisors. Seventy percent of respondents were from the private sector while 30% derived from the public sector including healthcare, community services, and non-profit organizations. Further, conducting regular external safety inspections of the workplace was found to be statistically associated with a safe work environment 2.88 95% CI [1.57, 5.27]. Conclusions. Strategies and training opportunities that focus on how to adapt occupational health and safety legislation to the nature and diversity of SMEs are recommended. Furthermore, employers may use such information to improve safety in their SMEs, while researchers can hopefully use such evidence to develop interventions that are applicable to meeting the occupational health and safety needs of SMEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Workplace disability prevention is important, but stakeholders can differ in their appreciation of such interventions. We present a responsive evaluation of a workplace disability prevention intervention in a Canadian healthcare organization. Three groups of stakeholders were included: designers of the intervention, deliverers, and workers. The aim was to examine the appreciation of this intervention by analyzing the discrepancies with respect to what these various stakeholders see as the causes of work disability, what the intervention should aim at to address this problem, and to what extent the intervention works in practice. Methods A qualitative research method was used, including data-triangulation: (a) documentary materials; (b) semi-structured interviews with the deliverers and workers (n = 14); (c) participatory observations of group meetings (n = 6); (d) member-checking meetings (n = 3); (e) focus-group meetings (n = 2). A grounded theory approach, including some ethnographic methodology, was used for the data-analysis. Results Stakeholders' perceptions of causes for work disability differ, as do preferred strategies for prevention. Designers proposed work-directed measures to change the workplace and work organizations, and individual-directed measures to change workers' behaviour. Deliverers targeted individual-directed measures, however, workers were mostly seeking work-directed measures. To assess how the intervention was working, designers sought a wide range of outcome measures. Deliverers focused on measurable outcomes targeted at reducing work time-loss. Workers perceived that this intervention offered short-term benefits yet fell short in ensuring sustainable return-to-work. Conclusion This study provides understanding of where discrepancies between stakeholders' perceptions about interventions come from. Our findings have implications for workplace disability prevention intervention development, implementation and evaluation criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objectives: To examine the prevalence of occupational health and safety risk factors among immigrants to Canada compared to Canadian-born labour force participants. Methods: Using data from Statistic Canada’s Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics, we examined the differential probabilities of six different occupational health and safety risks: non-membership in a union or collective bargaining agreement; employment in physically demanding occupations; employment in a workplace with less than 20 employees; regular shift work; irregular shift work; and having non-permanent employment. Our main independent variables were length of time in Canada, visible minority status, mother tongue, and location where highest level of education was attained. Models were adjusted for age, gender, education, marital status, province of residence, living in an urban or rural location, and industry group. Results: Of the six occupational health and safety risks examined we found that our main independent variables describing aspects of immigration status were associated with five; the exception being irregular shift work. Adjustment for industry did not attenuate these relationships to a large extent. Conclusions: Immigrants to Canada are faced with many occupational health and safety risks compared to Canadian-born respondents. These risks may be heightened among immigrants as they may not have knowledge of workplace rights and protections or have problems communicating health and safety risks or concerns. The timely provision information on occupational health and safety to immigrants before they start working should be a priority as they integrate into the Canadian labour market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the drivers of nurses' poor health and the implications for quality of care are important in sustaining a healthy workforce, stimulating professional nursing practice, and ensuring healthy lives while promoting the wellbeing of nurses of all ages. Previous scholarship has identified factors influencing nurses' wellbeing, but have neglected to take a comprehensive approach to assessing the multiple dimensions of nurses' wellbeing and their collective, syndemic effects. Neither have these studies explored the context within which these experiences occur, or how these experiences differ for nurses with multiple marginalized identities in spite of an increasingly diverse workforce. Using the six dimensions of wellness framework, we examined the distinct and interrelated dimensions of nurses' wellbeing that were either enhanced or aggravated by professional practice and how it changed by nurses' race and ethnicity using their situated experiences. The study was conducted using a qualitative research design, which drew on phenomenology and in-depth interviews with Registered and Practical Nurses (n = 70) in two Canadian cities. Of the six dimensions of wellbeing identified, direct care practice enhanced nurses' occupational, intellectual, and spiritual wellbeing, but worsened their physical, emotional and social health. A health gap was found along racial lines, as ethnic minority nurses reported more detrimental effects of direct care nursing on their physical, emotional, occupational, and social wellbeing than their white counterparts. Nurses resorted to institutional structures, social and emotional support from supervisors, coworkers and family members, and engaged in spiritual activities to cope with these adverse health effects. These findings highlight the utility of an adaptable framework in identifying the multiple dimensions and gaps in nurses' wellbeing. Furthermore, our findings echo the urgent need for workplace and safety policies that address issues of diversity and make the work environment safe, equitable and promote nurse productivity and quality care. • Direct care practice enhanced nurses' intellectual and occupational wellbeing. • Direct care practice worsened nurses' physical, emotional, and social wellbeing. • A health gap was found between white and ethnic minorities in direct care practice. • Institutional, social and emotional support systems are key health coping strategies. • An equitable work environment promotes nurses' wellbeing and patient quality care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]