“Northumberland legal centre wants to hear WSIB complaints” / Valerie MacDonald (Northumberland Today, Jul. 16, 2015)
“Clients say the WSIB staff are rude to them, treat them as if they are only pretending they cannot work, (and) harass them about seeking jobs even when it does not make any sense…” A campaign by Eastern Ontario region legal centres to gather client experiences of disrespectful treatment hopes to spur changes by the Board in communication and attitudes. The Northumberland clinic is asking injured workers who wish to make a complaint over treatment they received (in the last five years) to document it in a letter, including its impact on them and their family.
As the clinic’s Teresa Williams explains to Northumberland Today, discourtesy and belittlement of their injuries adds unnecessarily to the stress and anxiety of injured workers, who may “end up losing everything and are on social assistance before they get a decision from the WSIB…”
Further reading:
Eakin, Joan M. 2010. “Stigmatization of Injured Workers: The Construction of “Unworthiness” in the Compensation Process.” Presentation to CARWH 20120 Conference, Toronto, May 28-29.