Toronto – A new tool developed for immigrant workers in Ontario is intended to help them adjust to the province’s workplace safety rules, according to the Institute for Work & Health, a nonprofit research organization.
The Prevention is the Best Medicine toolkit was designed to teach newcomers to Ontario about occupational safety and health and workers’ compensation as they prepare to enter the workforce.
“Research indicates that Ontario’s newcomers are more likely than Canadian-born workers to be employed in jobs with a higher risk of work injuries,” lead researcher Agnieszka Kosny said in a press release. “Yet, they receive little information in language-training classes or job-search workshops about their job health and safety rights and responsibilities, or what to do if they get hurt on the job.”
IWH research shows immigrants are not receiving information on their rights and duties; the institute said this toolkit will help fill that void.
