Date Posted: 09/02/2025
Req ID: 44987
Faculty/Division: Faculty of Arts & Science
Department: Ctr for Industrial Relations
Campus: St. George (Downtown Toronto)
Description:
About us:
The Faculty of Arts & Science is the heart of Canada’s leading university and one of the most comprehensive and diverse academic divisions in the world. The strength of Arts & Science derives from our combined teaching and research excellence in the humanities, sciences and social sciences across 29 departments, seven colleges and 46 interdisciplinary centres, institutes and programs.
We can only realize our mission with the dedication and excellence of engaged staff and faculty. The diversity of opportunities and perspectives within the Faculty reflect the local and global landscape and the need for curiosity, innovative thinking and collaboration. At Arts & Science, we take pride in our legacy of innovation and discovery that has changed the way we think about the world.
Your opportunity:
This project is a multi-year initiative titled “Transforming Workplace Systems to Build Sustainable Capacity for Inclusion of Diverse Youth,” funded by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) under the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS). Administered through the University of Toronto’s Centre for Industrial Relations & Human Resources(CIRHR), this project aims to build employer capacity for barrier-free, disability-inclusive workplaces, particularly in the construction and manufacturing sectors. It prioritizes support for youth with disabilities (specifically those with neurodivergence, intellectual disabilities, or mental health challenges) through systems-level innovations, cross-sector collaboration, and the development of scalable tools, platforms, and frameworks.
Reporting directly to the Principal Investigators, the Senior Research Officer is expected to independently carry out research projects under the oversight of the Principal Investigators (Professor Emile Tompa and Professor Rafael Gomez). The Senior Research Officer will be involved in all aspects of the research, from the front-end foundational research, study design and implementation, to the translation of knowledge into tools and resources in the field, and to field evaluation of change initiatives. The Senior Research Officer is expected to have both qualitative and quantitative research skills, and will conduct research including review of literature, collecting and analysing data, producing reports, and assisting in developing policies and programs. In addition, the tasks will include undertaking environmental scan (scoping review and key informant interview) and other foundational applied knowledge gathering and synthesis, translation of knowledge to practice tools and resources, implementation evaluation, report writing, preparing reports, developing peer-reviewed publications, supporting knowledge mobilization activities, and contributing to planning and coordination across research components.
They will be directing a group of professional research officers in translating the proposed knowledge to practice initiatives.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Developing project schedules including milestones, critical path, timelines, deliverables and reporting
- Researching, analyzing and recommending grant opportunities
- Producing complex statistical information
- Analyzing detailed statistical information to inform project direction
- Delivering presentations at conferences on research findings
- Drafting and submitting documented procedures to the Research Ethics Board (REB) for approval
- Planning and estimating financial resources required for programs and/or projects
Essential Qualifications:
- Master's Degree or acceptable combination of equivalent experience. PhD in related fields is a strong asset
- A minimum of five (5) years of progressive research experience, with demonstrated ability to lead and execute research independently in applied, policy, or systems-level settings.
- Strong grasp, understanding, and experience applying in advancing disability-inclusive employment practices in the construction and manufacturing sectors by supporting cross-sectoral partnership development, co-design, and systems-level innovation.
- Demonstrated research experience in disability inclusion, employment systems, or cross-sectoral workforce initiatives is strongly preferred.
- Demonstrated experience conducting mixed-methods research, including co-design and stakeholder engagement methodologies.
- Proven experience in leading and supervising research officers in a unionized environment
- Experience in researching, analyzing and recommending grant opportunities and writing grant applications
- Demonstrated experience with knowledge management and translation (e.g., data management systems, analysis, visualizations, etc.)
- Strong quantitative analytic skills; field research experience; qualitative data analytic skills; partnered, co-design skills, workplace-based intervention research
- Advancing skills in research design, analysis, and report writing, inclusive of manuscript drafting
- Strong project management and organizational abilities.
- Excellent writing skills and presentation skill for both academic and non-academic audiences.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively within interdisciplinary and multi-stakeholder teams.
- Familiarity with accessibility, equity, and systems change frameworks
- Experience preparing and remediating digital documents (e.g., PDFs, Word, PowerPoint) to ensure full compliance with accessibility standards such as AODA or WCAG
- Strong skills in Microsoft Suite (Word, Excel and Powerpoint)
- Strong project management skill
- Excellent written and oral communications skills
To be successful in this role you will be:
- Cooperative
- Problem solver
- Procedural
- Resourceful
- Responsible
- Team player
NOTES:
This is a term opportunity for 18 months, with a posibility of renewal.
Closing Date: 09/12/2025, 11:59PM ET
Employee Group: USW
Personnel Subarea:USW
Appointment Type: Grant - Term
Schedule: Full-Time
Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone: USW Pay Band 14 -- $91,677. with an annual step progression to a maximum of $117,242. Pay scale and job class assignment is subject to determination pursuant to the Job Evaluation/Pay Equity Maintenance Protocol.
Job Category: Research Administration & Teaching
