This two-phase study utilized key informants to refine a questionnaire that was then completed by one hundred and twenty physical therapy students at the University of Toronto, to determine their perceptions of characteristics of injured workers. In this exploratory study, injured workers were more likely to be viewed negatively, when compared to 'any patients in an outpatient orthopaedic setting'. Most pronounced differences were seen for the discharge and emotional/need for support domains and less in the adaptability and motivation domains. Students who had experience with a work injured family member or a moderate level of work experience tended to have less negative perceptions of injured workers. In contrast, students who selected orthopaedics as their desired area of practice or were closer to completion of the physical therapy program tended to have more negative perceptions. These findings may be of interest to educators in planning curricula and clinical experiences for students.