The challenges faced by those in precarious work, as characterized by low or inconsistent pay, have seldom been more well understood. A recent study from the University of Waterloo adds to that understanding by exploring how workers in precarious employment react to injury and claim processes they view as unfair.

The authors explain that people in precarious work are often unaware of how, or indeed whether, they can access compensation, with many worried that they may lose their jobs.

“Precariously employed workers are vulnerable to unfair treatment and studies have shown that recent immigrants are over-represented in precarious employment,” they continue. “When unfair treatment takes place, it has adverse repercussions on workers, affecting their mental health, quality of life and future success.”

Fair treatment

The researchers hope that their work not only helps to shed light on the responses people have to unfair behavior but might also help workers’ compensation systems effectively communicate with injured workers about their needs throughout the claim process.

They developed a flowchart of both possible reactions and emotions that might occur as an employee goes through a worker compensation system. This process includes a range of emotions, including confusion, anger, and disappointment. They hope that this can be used by policymakers to better address any procedural unfairnesses in the system.

“This research leads to other questions to be studied: How pervasive is it for workers to quit their jobs after experiencing a work injury and procedural unfairness? What is the relationship between education about workers’ compensation and emotional and behavioural reactions of workers to perceived unfair claims processes?” the researchers conclude. “Precarious workers are at risk of unfair treatment due to power and knowledge differentials between employers and workers, and there is still a lot left to be addressed.”