Celebrating International Women’s Day 2025

This International Women’s Day, the OCRC is recognizing the important contributions women make in the Ontario workforce.  

Women can face unique risk factors in the workplace due to biological, social and job-related factors. The OCRC has prioritized research on women’s occupational health to support targeted interventions to reduce risks, improve workplace safety, and promote equity in occupational health protections. Some of these research initiatives include: 

Risk of Raynaud’s phenomenon (RP) among Ontario workers  

• Women employed in food and beverage processing, and electrical equipment fabricating had higher risks of developing RP.  

Sex differences in carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) risk among Ontario Workers  

• Women employed in janitorial and cleaning occupations, wood machining, and textile processing had higher risks of developing CTS.  

Female reproductive cancers  

• Women in managerial and administrative work, construction, and education had higher risks for uterine, ovarian, and cervical cancers.  

Exploring sex differences in lung cancer risk among Ontario workers 

• Risk of lung cancer was at least 20% higher among women than men in occupations such as wood processing, metal machining, and motor transport operating. 

Occupational exposures among nail technicians 

• Nail salon workers in Toronto may be exposed to diverse hazards including chemicals (e.g., the “toxic trio” – formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate and toluene), psychosocial risks (i.e., high job strain), and ergonomic hazards.