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Reduce workplace accidents and injuries |
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Written by Robert Robertson
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PEM Plant Engineering and Maintenance magazine (another CLB Media Inc. publication) recently conducted a workplace health and safety roundtable. Industry may have to re-think the high cost of workplace accidents and injuries. For example, a Quebec-based company [Transpavé Inc.] was fined a total of $110,000 on March 17 after pleading guilty under the federal government's Bill C-45 legislation. Clearly, accidents and injuries on the job must be reduced.
Taking part in PEM's recent workplace health and safety roundtable included:
• Maureen Shaw, president and chief executive officer, Industrial Accident Prevention Association (IAPA);
• Steve Jackson, CHRP, vice-president of prevention, Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB);
• Theresa Frechette, CEES, Safety Consulting Services and also representing the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE);
• Walter Dick, P. Eng., project manager, occupational health and safety program, Canadian Standards Association (CSA);
• Randall Templeton, M.Eng., senior technical marketing specialist North America, DuPont Personal Protection;
• Glenn Wood, Ph.D., CIH, ROH, associate health and safety consultant, environmental and corporate services, Golder Associates Ltd.;
• Colin Plastow, industrial product manager, Fluke Electronics Canada;
• Mark Baker, director of advertising and public relations, North Safety Products.
• Norm Clegg, executive director, Plant Engineering and Maintenance Association of Canada (PEMAC); and
• Gary Berwick, president, Quality Air Management Inc.
Here's a quick summary of some of the roundtable highlights:
Glenn Wood: "Based on my past experience, the chemical plants that had the best safety records were the ones with empowered workers. They [workers] would in a helpful and non-confrontational way bring to the attention of others those not conforming to safety requirements. Management has to also make a very strong safety statement to the workforce, especially to people on the shop floor. The message has to be that health and safety is either number one or on par with production."
Norm Clegg: "Safety is a combination of learned skills and behaviour. It's incumbent on the worker to acquire knowledge of workplace hazard identification. Employees should also become a part of their JOHSC in the workplace. Workers must further be aware of their legal right in Canada to refuse to complete a dangerous or hazardous task on the job. I encourage maintenance and other plant professionals to take industry courses that have a focus on safety, such as PEMAC's Maintenance Management Professional (MMP) certification program."
Colin Plastow: "When you get right down to it, health and safety is an attitude. On the electrical side, we only see a small chunk of it, but there are some companies that are really good at workplace health/safety and some that aren't. There are organizations that just do the bare minimum because they have to, while others embrace health and safety - and say it's the right thing to do."
Gary Berwick: "The air-pollution control industry is doing a horrendous job. Some manufacturer representatives, which call upon industry, are either not knowledgeable or provide off-the-shelf solutions. Unfortunately, air quality isn't an off-the-shelf scenario. With air quality, it sometimes comes down to short-term pain for long-term gain. Handling air quality correctly has a productivity and safety payback."
Maureen Shaw: "Companies have to offer effective training for workers and health and safety should be made the top corporate goal. There's also a need for ongoing reinforcement, especially for people who change jobs. We should consider national standards that would see guarding built into the manufacture of equipment. Currently, it's up to the company to put machine guards in place - better to do it at the design and manufacturing stage. I believe there's so much to do. We need to engage all aspects of our society and make workplace injuries and deaths unacceptable."
Randall Templeton: "I'm aware there's a need in apprentice programs for a much greater focus on safety. In the electrical program, there's only a small amount of time dedicated to safety in the fourth year. This is backwards. Safety should be taught a quarter of the time. If young people don't understand that doing the job safely is part of doing the job right, then they're missing the point. I also can't stress enough that safety is a line responsibility. It's not the safety department's job - it's everyone's job."
Robert Robertson is the editor of REM and PEM magazines.
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