Blog
As we move into the new year, the legal and injured worker community continue to honour the memory and achievements of engineer, labour lawyer, arbitrator, teacher and legal scholar Dr Ron Ellis. His lifelong work promoting fairness in administrative justice and workers’…
Legal clinics receive health & safety award
On November 23rd, 2023, Injured Workers Community Legal Aid Clinic (IWC) was the co-recipient of the Ontario Federation of Labour’s Prevention Link Health and Safety Award, which was shared with the staff of IAVGO Legal Clinic.
The award, which was given out…
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Opportunity for experienced practitioners to participate in survey on work-related suicide
Researchers at the University of Ottawa have begun a study of work-related suicide among Canadian workers. Many of us in the injured worker community have met workers who have contemplated taking their own lives or know people who have done so. The…
Migrant worker deeming case celebration
In a landmark decision Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (WSIAT) recently ruled that the WSIB’s practice of ending compensation to migrant farm workers after 12 weeks, sometimes less, without regard for their individual circumstances was inappropriate. The Tribunal reinstated loss…
A new resource for B.C.’s injured workers
IWRAP (Injured Workers Research & Advocacy Project) has just launched a new website (https://wcbadvocacybc.ca/) for injured workers, their advocates and a better compensation system in B.C. Spearheaded by lawyer and workers’ compensation expert Janet Patterson and endorsed by the B.C.…
A serious anniversary on Halloween : 110 years of workers’ compensation law
On October 31st, while our children and grandchildren trick or treat, injured and ill workers will be remembering Chief Justice William Meredith’s report to the Ontario Legislature that created our workers’ compensation system. This was the first piece of social legislature, preceding…
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Important notice: Oxy Addiction Class Action settlement
Do you know someone who was on OxyContin or OxyNEO?
There is a Canadian class action on behalf of people who were prescribed OxyContin or OxyNEO anytime between January 1, 1996, and February 28, 2017 and became addicted.
A $20 million settlement…
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Occupational disease – making the link between work and health – review (& ODRA response)
Update Oct 30: Responding to the landscape review, the Occupational Disease Reform Alliance acknowledges the work done but regrets the resulting report “misses the point entirely” when it comes to problems with the WSIB’s occupational disease recognition system. See “Another government report…
WSIAT Decision 971/23: Reimbursement for medical marijuana
A recent decision by Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (WSIAT) confirms the circumstance under which an injured worker may be reimbursed for the cost of medical cannabis. It has an interesting connection to the very first case that allowed reimbursement…
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ONIWG court challenge to WSIB Cost of Living Adjustment
When the rate of inflation rose sharply in the late 1960’s and 70’s permanently injured workers on fixed pensions saw the value of their pension drop sharply due to the increased cost of living. In 1985 injured workers won a long fought…
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