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“The voice of the employer is missing”: A critical review of the Canadian policy environment related to employees diagnosed with progressive cognitive impairment. 

Gerontological Society of America Annual Meeting. Oct 20-23, Virtual Conference

Authors: McMurray J., Levy A., James K., Reis, L., Kokorelias K., Boger J., Astell A. 

Presented by: Kristina Kokorelias

Aging in [Work]place: A systematic review of employers’ perspective on workers with progressive cognitive impairment

Gerontological Society of America Annual Meeting. Oct 20-23, Virtual Conference

Authors: McMurray J., Levy A., Reis, L., Kokorelias K., Boger J., Astell A.

Presented by: AnneMarie Levy, PhD

Employers’ response to workers with progressive cognitive impairment: A systematic literature review 

AGEWELL EPIC Conference. June 24, Virtual Conference.

Authors:  Josephine McMurray, PhD, AnneMarie Levy, Logan Reis, Bsc., Kristina Kokorelias, PhD, Jen Boger, PhD, Arlene Astell, PhD.  

An aging workforce increases the risk of workers experiencing cognitive decline that may lead to a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment or early onset dementia (MCI|EOD) while still employed. This systematic review explores the use of technologies (defined as any methods, processes, software, hardware or equipment) deployed by employers to accommodate, or build sustainable workspaces for, workers diagnosed with MCI|EOD.  After screening 3,860 titles/abstracts and 67 full text reviews, we identified and analyzed eight articles that met our inclusion criteria. We found that: 1) The existing literature almost exclusively focuses on employees’ perspectives on the quality of work life when diagnosed with MCI|EOD, 2) Negative workspace culture toward employees’ cognitive decline, and the variability of disease onset and progression, may account for low employer awareness, 3) Employer responses focus on mitigation of risk associated with workers’ impairment.  

While this review demonstrates there is scant research exploring employers’ perspectives on employees diagnosed with MCI|EOD, there is even less that explores technologies designed to specifically address employers’ needs and challenges. Technology will increasingly facilitate early identification of progressive neuro-cognitive disorders, and tools to help employers respond to an employee’s MCI|EOD disclosure as a disability accommodation rather than a terminal performance management challenge. Empathic research, that engages organizations in the process of understanding the value of affordable, employer-side technologies that help build diverse, sustainable, productive workspaces is critical to a foundational understanding of our aging workforce and accommodating workers who develop MCI|EOD while still employed. 

Employers’ response to workers with progressive cognitive impairment: A Review of Policy in Canada 

AGEWELL EPIC Conference. June 24, Virtual Conference.

Authors: Josephine McMurray, PhD, Kristina Kokorelias, PhD, AnneMarie Levy, PhD, Krista James, LLB, Logan Reis, BSc., Jen Boger, PhD, Arlene Astell, PhD.  

Longer lifespans, the gig economy, eligibility for government pensions, and more testing for age-related cognitive changes, increase the potential for workers developing mild cognitive impairment and/or early onset dementia (MCI|EOD) “on the job”. This critical analysis assesses Canada’s policy environment for employers when employees are diagnosed with MCI|EOD. Our search for policy literature included: a scoping review of academic literature involving Canadian-focussed articles, and countries where novel or innovative policy had been evaluated and published; a search for Canadian court judgements and tribunal decisions; and a grey literature search in both Canadian and international sources, as innovation will often happen “at the margin” and updated policy may take years to be enacted and formalized. We used participatory research to obtain feedback from a broad group of stakeholders including employers, industry, professional organizations, and government, as well as people living with MCI/dementia, to ensure outputs were reflective of current policy.   

We found that: 1) Canadian federally-regulated employers are governed by similar Acts & Codes as the provinces and territories, with some notable exceptions, 2) Disability discrimination and accommodation case law in Canada is settled, however there are few cognitive impairment cases to provide specific guidance, 3) Scant empirical research in the scientific literature addresses policy that incents employers to build workspaces for employees with MCI|EOD that help them stay on the job longer. We conclude that engaging with employers to better understand their needs will help policy-makers to support them build workspaces that encourage productive engagement of all workers. 

“The voice of the employer is missing”: A critical review of the Canadian policy environment related to employees diagnosed with progressive cognitive impairment. 

Gerontological Society of America Meeting. Nov 13, Virtual Conference.

gsa-poster_policy-review_2021Download

Employers’ response to workers with progressive cognitive impairment: A Review of Policy in Canada 

Gerontological Society of America Meeting. Nov 13, Virtual Conference.

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The Employer Perspective of Early Onset Mild Cognitive Impairment/Dementia in the Workspace

AGE-WELL Network of Centres of Excellence (NCE) Annual Meeting. Oct 23-24, Moncton (NB).

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