Leslie Nichols

Leslie Nichols is an assistant professor in the Equity, Diversity, and Human Rights program in the Sociology program unit in the School of Social Sciences. She holds a PhD in Policy Studies, an MA in Work and Society (now Labour Studies), and a joint BA in Women and Gender Studies and Historical Studies. Dr. Nichols’ early life was spent in a variety of places across Canada, including Northern Alberta, Northern Quebec, and Southern Ontario, and she has close family ties to Nova Scotia. As a structural intersectionalist, she applies theories of neoliberalism, feminism, and intersectionality to work dedicated to the improvement of the working and living conditions of some of Canada's most equity-deserving communities.

Ph.D.   Policy Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University

M.A.    Work and Society (now Labour Studies), McMaster University

B.A.    Women and Gender Studies & History, University of Toronto Mississauga

Leslie Nichols explores the experience of work and social well-being of some of Canada’s most equity-deserving groups, including immigrants, youth, and those defined by gender. Her studies have explored the experience of un/employment, precarious employment, self-employment, and unpaid labour. Her most recent project examines the short- and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on young workers.

2025-2027      

Learner Mobility Opportunities and Outcomes for Francophones: Career Prospects. ONCAT (The Ontario Council of Articulation and Transfer) Research Grant. Project # R2532 ($80,000)

2024               

Francophone Student Valuation of Postsecondary Education in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic / Évaluation des études postsecondaires par les étudiants à la lumière de la pandémie de COVID-19. Francophone Research Fund, Office of Francophone Affairs, Laurentian University ($7,000)

Northern and Rural Crime Symposium /  Symposium sur la criminalité dans le Nord et en milieu rural, Knowledge Mobilization Activities and Initiatives Fund –SSHRC Exchange Grants, Laurentian University  (co-primary investigator; $5,000)        

Francophone and Bilingual Student Valuation of Postsecondary Education in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic /  Évaluation des études postsecondaires par les étudiants à la lumière de la pandémie de COVID-19,  Office of Francophone Affairs, Laurentian University ($14,340)

Student Valuation of Postsecondary Education in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic, New Research Initiative Fund - SSHRC Explore Grants, Laurentian University ($5,000)

2022

Historical Studies Research Award, University of Toronto Mississauga, Department of Historical Studies ($2,000)

Working through the Unknowns: Media Analysis of Canadian Youth During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Wilfrid Laurier University 28.8 Professional Development Fund ($2,000)

2021   

Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Women Small Business Owners in Simcoe County, Ontario, Wilfrid Laurier University 28.8 Professional Development Fund ($2,000)

2020   

Gendered Division of Household Labour During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Wilfrid Laurier University 28.8 Professional Development Fund ($2,000)

2019   

Older Women under Neoliberal Capitalism, Wilfrid Laurier University 28.8 Professional Development Fund ($2,000)

2018               

Part 4––Women and Work in Canada, Contract Academic Staff (CAS) Research Fund # 28.8, Wilfrid Laurier University ($1,500)

Self-Employed Special Benefits, Contract Academic Staff (CAS) Research Fund # 28.8, Wilfrid Laurier University ($1,500)

 2017             

App Development Design Award, Cossette Health (co-awardee, Rupa Banerjee, Ryerson University; $50,000)

App Scalability Award, Interact (co-awardee, Rupa Banerjee, Ryerson University; $1,000)

Co-investigator, Destress and Take Control: An E-Mental Health Application to Support Precarious and Unemployed Immigrant Workers in the Greater Toronto Region (PI, Rupa Banerjee, Ryerson University) CIHR Catalyst Grant: Work Stress and Wellbeing Hackathon ($63,400)

2014 - 2016

Eight grants for studies in Canadian unemployment, immigrant unemployment, women and work, and women’s time use (from $9990 to $1500)

Edited Book

Nichols, L. (Ed.). (2019). Working Women in Canada: An Intersectional Approach. Toronto: Canadian Scholars/Women’s Press.

Edited Journal Volume

Nichols, L. (Ed.). (2018). Women and precarious work: Health implications. Women’s Health and Urban Life 14(1).

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

Nichols, L. (2025). Social justice in the domestic realm: Time poverty and wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies in Social Justice 19(1): 84 – 103.

Nichols, L. (2023). Working through the unknowns: Canadian youth’s experience of employment during COVID-19 Pandemic. Canadian Journal of Family and Youth 15(3): 113 – 129.

Nichols, L. (2023). Adjuncting for Life: The gendered experience of adjunct postsecondary instructors in Ontario. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy 202: 56-73.

Nichols, L., Ha, B. & V. Tyyskä. (2020). Canadian immigrant youth and the education-employment nexus. Canadian Journal of Family and Youth 12(1): 178 – 199.

Nichols, L. (2018). Newcomer women’s experiences of immigration and precarious work in Toronto. Women’s Health and Urban Life 14(1): 7–30.

Nichols, L. (2018). Women and precarious work: Health implications. Women’s Health and Urban Life 14(1): iii–vi.      

Nichols, L. (2018). Combining diaries and interviews in time use studies. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy 38(9/10): 766–779.

Nichols, L. J., Etemadi, T. & V. Tyyskä (2018). Time poverty of Pakistani immigrant women in Toronto. South Asian Diaspora 10(1): 31–44.

Nichols, L. (2016). Motherhood and unemployment: intersectional experiences from Toronto and Halifax. Canadian Review of Social Policy 76: 1–24.

Nichols, L. (2016). Lived experiences of unemployed women in Toronto and Halifax, Canada, who were previously precariously employed. Alternate Routes 27: 162–186.

Nichols, L. (2013). Analyzing policy frames for unemployed workers’ supports within Canada. AG: International Journal of Gender Studies 2(3): 219–245.

Nichols, L. (2012). Orloff versus Misra et al.: Assessing feminist approaches to gender, the state, and the transition to Employment Insurance in Canada. MP: An Online Feminist Journal 3(6): 172–207.

Nichols, L. (2012). Labour market policy in Canada and Denmark: “Flexicurity” and the possibilities for progressive labour market reform. Socialist Studies: The Journal for Society of Socialist Studies 8(2): 163–188.

Nichols, L. (2012). Alliance building to create change: The Women’s Movement and the 1982 CUPW Strike. Just Labour: A Canadian Journal of Work and Society 19: 59–72.

Peer-Reviewed Book Chapters

Nichols, L. (Forthcoming). The vast rural and remote areas of Canada’s Provincial North: A snapshot of Canadian women’s experience of poverty. In International Handbook of Women and Poverty: Global Essays and Social Justice Initiatives, edited by S. Katz & L. Livesey. Bloomsbury Press.

Nichols, L. (2019). Young women: Navigating the education-employment divide. In Working Women in Canada: An Intersectional Approach, edited by L. Nichols. Canadian Scholars/ Women’s Press. 

Nichols, L. (2019). Unemployed and underemployed women in Canada. In Working Women in Canada: An Intersectional Approach, edited by L. Nichols. Canadian Scholars/Women’s Press.

Nichols, L., Tyyskä, V., & P. Aggarwal (2019). Immigrant women’s work: Paid and unpaid labour in the neoliberal economy. In Working Women in Canada: An Intersectional Approach, edited by L. Nichols. Canadian Scholars/Women’s Press.

Nichols, L. (2019). Women, work, and intersectionality: An introduction. In Working Women in Canada: An Intersectional Approach, edited by L. Nichols. Canadian Scholars/Women’s Press.

Nichols, L. & V. Tyyskä (2015). Immigrant Women in Canada and the United States In Immigrant Experiences in North America: Understanding Settlement and Integration, edited by H. Bauder and J. Shields. Canadian Scholars’ Press.

Report

Turcotte, J. F., Nichols, L. & L. Philipps. (2016). Maximizing Opportunity, Mitigating Risk: Aligning Law, Policy and Practice to Strengthen Work-Integrated Learning in Ontario. Toronto: Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.