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Today's labor market has changed over time, shifting from mostly full-time, secure, and standard employment relationships to mostly entrepreneurial and precarious working arrangements. In this context, self-employment (SE), a prominent type of precarious work, has been growing rapidly due to globalization, automation, technological advances, and the rise of the 'gig' economy, among other factors. Employment precarity profoundly impacts workers' health and well-being by undermining the comprehensiveness of social security systems, including occupational health and safety systems. This study examined how self-employed (SE'd) workers sought out support from informal support systems following illness, injury, and income reduction or loss. Based on in-depth interviews with 24 solo SE'd people in Ontario, Canada, narrative analysis was conducted of participants' experiences with available informal supports following illness or injury. We identified three main ways that SE'd workers managed to sustain their businesses during periods of need: (i) by relying on savings; (ii) accessing loans and financial support through social networks, and (iii) receiving emotional and practical support. We conclude that SE'd workers managed to survive despite social security system coverage gaps by drawing on informal support systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background In recent decades, there has been a signifcant transformation in the world of work that is characterized by a shift from traditional manufacturing and managerial capitalism, which ofered stable full-time employment, to new forms of entrepreneurial capitalism. This new paradigm involves various forms of insecure, contingent, and non-standard work arrangements. Within this context, there has been a noticeable rise in Self-Employed individuals, exhibiting a wide range of -working arrangements. Despite numerous investigations into the factors driving individuals towards Self-Employment and the associated uncertainties and insecurities impacting their lives and job prospects, studies have specifcally delved into the connection between the precarious identity of Self-Employed workers and their overall health and well-being. This exploratory study drew on a ‘precarity’ lens to make contributions to knowledge about Self-Employed workers, aiming to explore how their vulnerable social position might have detrimental efects on their health and well-being. Methods Drawing on in-depth interviews with 24 solo Self-Employed people in Ontario (January – July 2021), narrative thematic analysis was conducted based on participants’ narratives of their work experiences. The dataset was analyzed with the support of NVIVO qualitative data analysis software to elicit narratives and themes. Findings The fndings showed that people opt into Self-Employment because they prefer fexibility and autonomy in their working life. However, moving forward, in the guise of fexibility, they encounter a life of precarity, in terms of job unsustainability, uncertainties, insecurities, unstable working hours and income, and exclusion from social benefts. As a result, the health and well-being of Self-Employed workers are adversely afected by anger, anomie, and anxiety, bringing forward potential risks for a growing population. Conclusion and implications Neoliberalism fabricates a ‘precariat’ Self-Employed class. This is a social position that is vague, volatile, and contingent, that foreshadows potential threats of the health and wellbeing of a growing population in the changing workforce. The fndings in this research facilitate some policy implications and practices at the federal or provincial government level to better support the health and wellbeing of SE’d workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Refugee women are often unable to secure meaningful employment on arrival to Canada. As a result, the uptake of social assistance is common among new arrivals as a temporary provision of income whilst attending programs or upgrading skills. This study explored the factors that contribute to the use of social assistance among refugee women with a focus on the women's views and experience with the current welfare state as a tool for social protection. A modified grounded theory analysis guided our study which consisted of interviews with 20 recent refugee women and 9 settlement agency staff. The women described issues with the design and administration of social assistance which, at times, did not align with their needs. Some contrasted the conundrum of working in precarious jobs and receiving reduced social assistance payments as a consequence. Findings question prior assumptions on the use of social assistance among refugee groups. In particular, the refugee women appeared eager to work but were not afforded the same opportunities as other immigrant groups suggesting the need for social assistance schemes to adapt to the particular circumstances of refugee women to facilitate employment integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Today's labor market has changed over time, shifting from mostly full-time, secured, and standard employment relationships to mostly entrepreneurial and precarious working arrangements. Thus, self-employment (SE) has been growing rapidly in recent decades due to globalization, automation, technological advances, and the recent rise of the 'gig' economy, among other factors. Accordingly, more than 60% of workers worldwide are non-standard and precarious. This precarity profoundly impacts workers' health and well-being, undermining the comprehensiveness of social security systems. This study aims to examine the experiences of self-employed (SE'd) workers on how they are protected with available social security systems following illness, injury, and income reduction or loss. Methods: Drawing on in-depth interviews with 24 solo SE'd people in Ontario (January – July 2021), thematic analysis was conducted based on participants' narratives of experiences with available security systems following illness or injury. The dataset was analyzed using NVIVO qualitative software to elicit narratives and themes. Findings: Three major themes emerged through the narrative analysis: (i) policy-practice (mis)matching, (ii) compromise for a decent life, and (iii) equity in work and benefits. Conclusions: Meagre government-provided formal supports may adversely impact the health and wellbeing of self-employed workers. This study points to ways that statutory social protection programs should be decoupled from benefits provided by employers. Instead, government can introduce a comprehensive program that may compensate or protect low-income individuals irrespective of employment status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative research is an increasingly popular research approach for tackling the evolving complexity of social issues. With this rise in use, methods of qualitative data collection are becoming highly diverse, moving away from conventional approaches and welcoming more innovative and creative methods of data collection in a quest to produce critically and theoretically engaged new knowledge. Although traditional face-to-face interviews remain a compelling and popular means, modern innovative technology-based interviewing, such as videoconference interviews, can play a pivotal role in qualitative research. This article argues that this approach is pragmatic because video conferencing interviews are relatively affordable for research teams and, for many research participants, they are more accessible than face-to-face interviews. On the other hand, it provides a unique opportunity for researchers and participants by compressing the time-space divide, facilitating safety, reducing travel-related expenses, accessing transnational participants, maintaining social distance, and protecting personal space and privacy. Yet, this article also argues that videoconferencing can be dogged by practical challenges that might conflict with the holistic quality of qualitative research, such as dropped calls and loss of intimacy compared to traditional in-person interviews. This article presents the experiences of a young researcher, who reflects on how and why he conducted Skype interviews in his research. The article concludes that, despite the relative merits and demerits, videoconference interviews can be a useful supplement or replacement for traditional face-to-face interviews. However, more research is needed to gain a robust understanding of how this type of interview meets basic assumptions about the quality of interviews and affects the overall rigor of qualitative research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although social constructionism (SC) and Foucauldian discourse analysis (FDA) are well established constructionist analytical methods, this article propose that Foucauldian discourse analysis is more useful for qualitative data analysis as it examines social legitimacy. While the SC is able to illuminate how the "meaning" of our social action is constructed through our everyday interaction in socio-cultural and political contexts, questions emerge that are beyond the scope of the SC. These questions are concerned with understanding how the construction of "meaning" is connected to the power imbalance in our society, as well as how a particular version of reality comes to us as truth, having excluded other versions. Moreover, SC does not distinguish between successful and unsuccessful/marginalized claims. This article reflects on how using FDA addresses weaknesses in SC when used in qualitative data analysis, using specific examples from different literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the employment integration experiences of Syrian refugee women arriving to Canada through four common refugee streams: government-assisted, private sponsorship, Blended Visa office referral, and as refugee claimants. Drawing on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Syrian refugee women and key informants, we show how differences between streams – eligibility requirements, supports provided, services rendered – facilitate or act as barriers to seeking out and securing employment. The finding suggests that government-assisted refugee women struggled the most when compared with the other refugee women. Particularly, GAR women arrived with part of their families and minimal supports, affecting their mental well-being and job search. Meanwhile, the other refugee women typically arrived with the qualities (language, work experience) needed to integrate and so, were able to choose when, how, and the type of work they secured. Through this study, we propose policy recommendations that should be incorporated within the Canadian refugee system to mediate challenges and promote a positive resettlement experience for all refugees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose:This scoping review identifies the foci of research articles that address government laws, policies and programs designed to foster labour market integration of people who, due to illness or disability, face challenges entering or staying in the workforce. Method: A systematic search of English-language peer-reviewed articles published between 2000 and 2014 yielded 14,474 articles. Title and abstract review identified 723 included articles that addressed government-led programs, policy or legislation on work integration and or income support after injury, illness or impairment. These were sorted by theme, work disability program or policy, disability type, jurisdiction and year published. Results: The number of articles published that address work disability laws, policies and programs increased steadily.Most articles addressed disability in general. Among articles with a specific health focus, mental health was the most common. Research gaps are identified for mixed method study designs, chronic and episodic conditions, illness and cancer and for work disability policy studies outside of North America, Northern Europe and Australia. Conclusions: We find a growing number of published articles about work disability and policy and identify specific areas where is a need for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose:Theoretical and empirical research findings attest to the workplace being a social environment in which co-workers have a critical influence on the employment outcomes and return-to-work (RTW) success of other employees. However, co-workers do not have a formal role in RTW planning. The aim of this study was to explore how managers responsible for developing and implementing RTW procedures view the role of co-workers in this process. Method:An exploratory qualitative pilot study was conducted in Canada. Participants (1 male; 13 females; mean experience in RTW = 11.8 years) were workplace (n=8) or RTW managers (n=6) with direct oversight of RTW plans. The participants were recruited via invitation from a research institute and were drawn from three different provinces. Data were gathered via open-ended questions and were coded and subject to thematic analysis. Findings:Three key themes were identified: (1) Managers view RTW as having little relevance to co-workers but expect them to cooperate with the arrangements; (2) Formal procedures are inadequate when psychosocial barriers to work resumption are present, so managers use informal strategies to engage co-workers’ emotional and social support; and (3) Managers have difficulty integrating RTW procedures with other legal obligations, such as privacy and confidentiality requirements. Conclusion:Existing arrangements for the development and implementation of RTW are sufficient most of the time, but may be inadequate when an injured worker presents with psychosocial barriers to work resumption.Implications for RehabilitationStandard RTW arrangements can be inadequate when a RTW plan requires active co-worker support.Privacy and confidentiality provisions can result in managers using informal procedures for information exchange and to engage co-workers.The use of risk management strategies – assessment, consultation and communication – could be used to include co-workers when workplace issues threaten the success of a RTW plan. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose: The aim was to analyze the role and activities of employers with regard to return to work (RTW), in local workplace practice. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with sick-listed workers and their supervisors in 18 workplaces ( n = 36). The analytical approach to study the role of employers in RTW was based on the three-domain model of social corporate responsibility. The model illustrates the linkage between corporations and their social environment, and consists of three areas of corporate responsibility: economic, legal and ethical. Results: Employers had difficulties in taking social responsibility for RTW, in that economic considerations regarding their business took precedence over legal and ethical considerations. Employers engaged in either 'RTW activities' or 'transition activities' that were applied differently depending on how valued sick-listed workers were considered to be to their business, and on the nature of the job (e.g. availability of suitable work adjustments). Conclusions: This study suggests that Swedish legislation and policies does not always adequately prompt employers to engage in RTW. There is a need for further attention to the organizational conditions for employers to take social responsibility for RTW in the context of business pressure and work intensification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the risk that work disability policies lock people into work disability rather than promote durable health and return to work. We outline the concept of a work disability trap as a heuristic device to explore this policy paradox inherent in the design of most social insurance systems. This is a conceptual paper drawing on examples from existing research. We identify three manifestations of the disability trap: not overcoming disability; underperforming; and returning to work prematurely. The causes of these manifestations are identified as structural rather than based on malingering clients, while negative consequences are identified both on client and system levels. We emphasize the need for systems built on trust and reasonable expectations, and the need for providing rehabilitation support independently of economic compensation. Universal basic income is introduced as a potential tool to ameliorate some of the consequences of the disability trap. Compensation systems focusing too prominently on early return to work may have counter-productive effects on rehabilitation. Overly suspicious assessment systems nurture a view of people as malingerers. Rehabilitation professionals need to be attentive to system-generated effects which may prevent overcoming work disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Young workers are a vulnerable population for workplace accidents. [•] A in situ analytical approach can explain how young adults learn workplace safety. [•] The work activity regulation model explains how work determinants shape health. [•] Learning, rather than teaching, paradigms better assist OHS skills development. [•] Learning to allow a “margin of manoeuvre” helps young workers to stay healthy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose: Social service programmes that offer consumer choices are intended to guide service efficiency and customer satisfaction. However, little is known about how social service consumers actually make choices and how providers deliver such services. This article details the practical implementation of consumer choice in a Canadian workers' compensation vocational retraining programme. Method: Discourse analysis was conducted of in-depth interviews and focus groups with 71 injured workers and service providers, who discussed their direct experience of a vocational retraining system. Data also included procedural, policy and administrative documents. Results: Consumer choice included workers being offered choices about some service aspects, but not being able to exercise meaningful discretion. Programme cost objectives and restrictive rules and bureaucracy skewed the guidance provided to workers by service providers. If workers did not make the 'right' choices, then the service providers were required to make choices for them. This upset workers and created tension for service providers. Conclusions: The ideal of consumer choice in a social service programme was difficult to enact, both for workers and service providers. Processes to increase quality of guidance to social service consumers and to create a systematic feedback look between system designers and consumers are recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Immigrants often come to Canada for the purpose of employment and make up a large proportion of our labour force. Yet, these workers' labour market experience may not always be positive – new immigrant workers can have difficulties finding a job in their field and may end up working in ‘survival jobs’ that expose them to workplace hazards. Workers who are new to Canada may not be familiar with legislation designed to protect them at work or with social programs that can help after a work-related injury. Methods. Through a series of in-depth interviews this study examined the experiences of new immigrants after they were injured on the job. Results. The analysis revealed that many workers were in manual, ‘survival jobs’ and had not received job or occupational health and safety training. Many did not speak the English language well and knew little about their rights. While workers often felt trepidation about reporting their injury, most told a health care provider or employer that they were injured or in pain. This, however, rarely led to timely or appropriate claim filing. Workers were often discouraged from filing a claim, misinformed about their rights or offered ‘time off work’ in lieu of reporting the injury to worker's compensation. In instances where a claim was filed, communication problems were common and led to mistakes being made on forms and misunderstandings with the adjudicator and employer. Interpretation services were not always offered consistently or at the correct time. Conclusion. Efforts must be made to systematically inform new immigrants of their health and safety rights, responsibilities and entitlements as they are entering the labour market. Systems must be put in place to ensure that immigrants can access the compensation system in the event of a work-related injury and that employers and healthcare providers fulfil their reporting responsibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose. The objective was to explore the role and contribution of co-workers in the return-to-work process. The social interaction of co-workers in the return-to-work process are analysed within the framework of the Swedish national and local employer organisational return-to-work policies. Methods. An exploratory qualitative method was used, consisting of open-ended interviews with 33 workplace actors across seven work units. Organisational return-to-work policies were collected from the three public sector employers. Results. The key findings that emerged during analysis showed that some co-workers have a more work-task oriented approach towards the return-to-work process, whilst others had a more social relational approach. In both situations, the social relations worked hand in hand with job tasks (how task were allocated, and how returning workers were supported by others) and could make or break the return-to-work process. Conclusion. A suggestion for improvement of return-to-work models and policies is the need to take into account the social relations amongst workplace actors, especially involving co-workers when planning for return-to-work interventions. Otherwise the proper attention to work arrangements, social communication and the role of co-workers in the return-to-work process might not be seen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) play an important role in the provision of health and social services. In Canada the nonprofit sector includes 7.5 million volunteers and employs over 1.6 million paid workers. The sector is overwhelmingly female-dominated — women make up over 80 per cent of workers in these nonprofit services. Work performed by women has traditionally been undervalued and invisible. It has often been considered safe by researchers, employers, policymakers and sometimes even workers themselves. Although there is some indication that jobs in the restructuring social services sector can be characterized by constant demand, high stress and violence, research into the working conditions and health hazards of these types of jobs has not been a priority. Using data from a qualitative study examining work in NPOs, we trace the ways that work performed in these workplaces is both gendered and invisible. We identify three types of invisible labour. ‘Background work’ facilitates and supports more visible and recognized organizational activities. Certain organizational language obscures the full spectrum of work that takes place in the organizations and the risks it may involve. ‘Empathy work’ includes the relationship building, counselling and crisis intervention that comprise key components of social service delivery. ‘Emotional labour’ involves the management of client emotions and workers' own emotions in the process of working with clients and delivering care under conditions of scarcity and contraction. The invisibility of these activities means that much of the day-to-day work done in the organizations, while particularly important in the context of social service restructuring, is taken-for-granted and undervalued by organizational outsiders. As a result, many of the hazards present in the jobs are hidden from view and workers' health may be compromised. We argue that the invisibility and taken-for-grantedness of certain types of work in NPOs is reflected in, and constitutive of, particular exclusions and shortcomings of current occupational health and safety systems designed to protect the health of workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Flexible work is now endemic in modern economies. A growing literature both praises work flexibility for accommodating employees'' needs and criticizes it for fueling contingency and job insecurity. Although studies have identified varied effects of flexible work, questions remain about the workplace dimensions of flexibility and how occupational workplace health is managed in these workplaces. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study of how managers in the computer software industry situate workplace flexibility and approach worker health. In-depth interviews were conducted with managers (and some workers) at 30 firms in Ontario, Canada. Using a critical discourse analysis approach, we examine managers'' optimistic descriptions of flexibility which emphasize how flexible work contributes to workers'' life balance. We then contrast this with managers'' depictions of flexibility work practices as intense and inescapable. We suggest that the discourse of flexibility, and the work practices they foster, make possible and reinforce an increased intensity of work that is driven by the demands of technological pace and change that characterize the global information technology and computer software industries. Finally, we propose that flexible knowledge work has led to a re-framing of occupational health management involving a focus on what we call “strategies of resilience” that aim to buttress workers'' capacities to withstand intensive and uncertain working conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We are in the midst of a disjuncture between welfarist rationalities which assume collective insurance techniques such as workers' compensation, and neoliberal rationalities which assume a greater burden on individual responsibility to avoid risk. This study examines the mundane administration of the welfarist Canadian workers' compensation system through a qualitative study of how managers in four Ontario newspaper workplaces understand and respond to workers complaining of repetitive strain injury (RSI). Findings indicate that managers are informed by a pervasive neoliberal rationality and view RSI-prone workers as undisciplined and neglectful of their own bodies. Managers worked to reduce workers' claims for compensation through extensive surveillance of 'risky' worker bodies. The worker body emerges as a biopolitical terrain for the working out of tensions between welfarist and neoliberal rationalities as worker health becomes a locus for discourse on where to draw the line between rights and responsibilities and between civilian and the state. While others have targeted macrostructural reasons for the malfunctioning of workers' compensation, these data point to an alternative micropolitical explanation. This paper argues that the shift from a welfarist to a neoliberal rationality in workers' compensation consists in the mundane administration of worker bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of a qualitative study of health in small enterprises, this paper attempts to theorise the social production of illness and injury in the workplace. Particular features of working life in small workplaces, especially their personalised social relations and low polarisation of employer-employee interests, shape workers' perceptions of the employment relationship and of health in relation to work. Strained authority relations at work can form a key social context in which health and injury are constructed. In situations of conflictful supervisory relations, bodily experiences can become 'problematised'. Meanings attributed to health conditions and the quality of the employment relationship are transformed and merged, prompting a questioning of the legitimacy of power asymmetries in the workplace and recognition of the conflicting interests of labour and capital. Bodily experiences and ill-health offer possibilities for resistance and become mediators of broader social tensions. Unheeded illness claims deepen feelings of distrust and blame, further causing labour relations to deteriorate, and re-producing the social conditions for illness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Explores developmentally disabled adults' understanding of community life. Interview of seven mildly developmentally disabled adults; Authors' aim to challenge the assumption that integrated community housing provides an independence similar to that enjoyed by the normal population.

Purpose: Although work has been found to be meaningful and a source of motivation to return to work in certain disabled populations, it was unclear if this was also true for people experiencing a long period of unemployment and job loss due to a musculoskeletal injury. Therefore, the aim of this phenomenological study was to explore the meaning of work for those with chronic work disability due to a musculoskeletal injury. Method: The data from 27 interviews, conducted with 9 participants, was analyzed using the Empirical Phenomenological Psychological method. Results: Work remained central to the lives of the participants and aligned with previous valued work outcomes and goals regardless of the amount of time away from work. These findings point to the importance of recognizing the ongoing centrality of work for those with chronic work disability and the importance of tapping into work values and beliefs to provide workers with the motivation needed to get past physical and systemic barriers to return to work. Conclusions: This study shows that a shift in focus back to meaning not only has benefits for people with chronic work disability, but for occupational therapists in their ability to make a unique and effective contribution to the field of work disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Survey research indicates that a surprising number of 12 to 14 year olds in North America engage in some form of paid work, and work-related injuries for this age group are reported at rates similar to older teens. Parents exhibit significant involvement in many aspects of their teens’ work and may influence perceptions of work safety, yet few studies have explored this phenomenon from a qualitative perspective with parents of working 12 to 14 year olds. Methods: This paper focuses on parental perceptions and understandings of work safety based on focus groups conducted with urban Canadian parents of young teens who work for pay. Parents discussed the types of job held by their 12 to 14 year olds, the perceived costs and benefits to working at this age, and their understanding of risk and supervision on the job. A grounded theory approach was used to thematically analyze the focus group transcripts. Results: Parents in this study held favourable attitudes towards their 12 to 14 year olds’ working. Parents linked pro-social moral values and skills such as responsibility, work ethic, time management, and financial literacy with their young teen’s employment experience. Risks and drawbacks were generally downplayed or discounted. Perceptions of workplace safety were mitigated by themes of trust, familiarity, sense of being in control and having discretion over their 12 to 14 year olds’ work situation. Further, parental supervision and monitoring fell along a continuum, from full parental responsibility for monitoring to complete trust and delegation of supervision to the workplace. Conclusions: The findings suggest that positive parental attitudes towards working overshadow occupational health and safety concerns. Parents may discount potential hazards based on the presence of certain mitigating factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Epidemiological studies have found that teenage workers have higher occupational injury rates than adult workers, and that young males are a particularly high-risk subgroup. However, there have been few studies to date that have explored qualitatively young workers’ everyday understandings and experiences of occupational health risks. Based on focus groups conducted with Canadian urban and suburban teenagers aged 16–18 years, this paper explores young workers’ understandings and experiences of occupational health risks, and their gendered nature. The respondents were employed in a diverse range of jobs. The findings suggest that young workers experience a number of minor injuries and physical complaints related to their work. These injuries were typically seen as “part of the job” because they happened frequently and were of low severity. Also, the experience of these injuries as “part of the job” was informed by the young workers’ perceived lack of control to improve or alter the conditions of their work. Furthermore, young workers’ complaints and concerns were systematically discounted and this happened in a gendered fashion. Whereas the females emphasized how their complaints were actively disregarded by their superiors, males (and some females in male-dominated work settings) described how they stifled their complaints in order to appear mature among their (older) co-workers. Comparisons with qualitative studies of adult workers suggest that accepting some risks and injuries as “part of the job” is not peculiar to young workers. The implications of these findings for improving workplace safety for young workers are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Sickness insurance and workers' compensation systems decide on peoples' eligibility for benefits, and are commonly based on medical certificates and assessments of work ability. Systems differ in the extent to which they preserve clients' dignity and right to fair assessments. In this article, we define a new concept for studying interactions between individuals and systems: social insurance literacy, which concerns how well people understand the different procedures and regulations in social insurance systems, and how well systems communicate with clients in order to help them understand the system. The concept was defined through a scoping literature review of related concepts, a conceptual re-analysis in relation to the social insurance field, and a following workshop. Five related concepts were reviewed for definitions and operationalizations: health literacy, financial/economic literacy, legal capability/ability, social security literacy, and insurance literacy. Social insurance literacy is defined as the extent to which individuals can obtain, understand and act on information in a social insurance system, related to the comprehensibility of the information provided by the system. This definition is rooted in theories from sociology, social medicine and public health. In the next step, a measure for the concept will be developed based on this review. Social insurance literacy is a new concept that is based on theories in sociology, social medicine and public health. It provides conceptual orientation for analyzing factors that may influence different outcomes of peoples' contacts with social insurance systems. The concept is of relevance for rehabilitation professionals since it focuses on how interactions between individuals and systems can influence the rehabilitation process. The study will in the next step develop a measure of social insurance literacy which will have practical applications for rehabilitation professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is increasing demand for comprehensive community healthcare that integrates community mental health and primary care services. The Canadian Mental Health Association-Durham Branch provides an example of how the Integrated Health Hub (IHH) Model evolved organically to meet this need. The Framework Method was used to analyze interviews and focus groups with 29 participants. Results reveal five key domains critical to the development of the IHH Model (1) Communication; (2) Hub 'Nuances'; (3) Leadership; (4) Staff; and (5) Challenges. These findings provide insights for other community mental health organizations wishing to provide comprehensive integrated community healthcare services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research indicates that work modifications can effectively enhance return to work (RTW) at an early stage of work disability. We aimed to examine how occupational physicians (OPs) reason about recommending early return to work (RTW) with work modifications. Pre-defined propositions regarding the use of work modifications in promoting early RTW were discussed in four focus groups with altogether 11 Finnish OPs. Discussions were audio recorded, and the transcribed data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Five different rationales for supporting early RTW were identified: to manage medical conditions, to enhance employee well-being, to help workplace stakeholders, to reduce costs to society, and to enhance OP’s own professional fulfillment. However, OPs identified situations and conditions in which early RTW may not be suitable. In addition, there were differences between the OPs in the interpretation of the rationales, suggesting variation in clinical practice. In conclusion, encouraging early RTW with work modifications was perceived by OPs as a meaningful task and, to a large extent, beneficial for employees and several stakeholders. However, this practice was not accepted without consideration to the RTW situation and context. If early RTW and work modifications are to be promoted, OPs should be offered education that addresses their views regarding this practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in the co-author name. The co-author name should be Stephanie Skopyk instead it was published incorrectly as Stephanie Skoypk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a large body of research examining work disability management and the return to work (RTW) of sick or injured workers. However, although this research makes clear the roles of the returning worker and supervisor, that of the co-workers is less well understood. To increase understanding of this topic, we have identified, reviewed, and discussed three studies that emerged from our connection with a Canadian research-training program. The first study, conducted in Sweden by Tjulin, MacEachen, and Ekberg (2009), showed that co-workers can play a positive role in RTW, but this is often invisible to supervisors. The second study, undertaken by Dunstan and MacEachen (2013) in Canada, found that RTW could both positively and negatively impact co-workers. For instance, co-workers may benefit from learning new skills, but may also be burdened by the need to assume extra work to accommodate a returning worker. The third study, performed in Belgium by Mortelmans and Verjans (2012) and Mortelmans, Verjans, and Mairiaux (2012) reported the need to include the expectations and objections of co-workers in RTW plans and implemented a three-step RTW tool that involves co-workers. Taken together, these studies highlight the social context of work, the positive role played by co-workers in the RTW process, the impacts of workplace social relations on RTW outcomes, and the benefits to all of involving co-workers in RTW plans. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]