On Saturday May 5, 2012, the 15th Annual BC Championship Forklift Rally will take place at the Cloverdale Agriplex. Forklift operators from around BC will gather to test their knowledge in writing and their skills behind the wheel. For the first time, participants will also have a chance to win one of four pairs of Canucks tickets.
This new video tells the story of Tony McNaughton, a Starbucks manager in downtown Vancouver, who was stabbed to death at work while protecting a staff member from her violent husband. It’s part of a new toolkit from WorkSafeBC that helps employers and workers reduce the risk of domestic violence entering the workplace.
Stop – think – act. That’s the message for transportation/warehouse workers in this new video from the Trucking Safety Council of BC, but its message transfers to other industries.
“Whoa! Look at that driver! He’s talking into an iPhone – right in front of his face!” yelled my passenger recently as we passed through the intersection of Main and Terminal in Vancouver, BC, Canada. It’s this type of behaviour that leads to vehicle crashes – the number one cause of traumatic work-related deaths.
At 19, Sam Livingstone was working on a carpentry job – about to start an apprenticeship – when a piece of wire shot out of a nail gun, pierced his cornea, and blinded him in one eye. Today, at 36, Sam is a corporate safety manager for RDM Enterprises. I first met him at the Bridging the Gap safety conference, and we talked about his prescription safety glasses, but I didn’t know about his injury til he told me recently via email.
One hundred and forty-two people died from workplace injury and illness in 2011 in BC. They will be remembered – along with far too many others – at Day of Mourning ceremonies throughout the province (and around the world) on April 27 and 28.
I’ve been emailing with a safety contact in Oregon, and have some praise to share regarding BC’s young worker safety program. “We are very familiar with the BC program, and consider it to be the best regarding young worker health and safety,” says Dede Montgomery, an OHS specialist in Oregon, whose fourth annual young worker safety video contest is underway.
Check out these asbestos resources offered in honour of Global and National Asbestos Awareness Week Apr. 1 to 7.
Falls produce 44 percent of the claims and 79 percent of all claim costs in the Steep Slope Roofing classification unit from 2008 to 2010 in BC, according to WorkSafeBC. That’s why the BC Roofing Safety Association and partners are hosting a one-day symposium for people in the steep slope roofing industry on March 28 in Langley.
Recently on Twitter (where I am @SpeakinOfSafety) I noticed this link: How About An Easy Free Safety Tip, posted by Kyle Thill of Toyota-Lift Minnesota. It leads to his blog post reminding forklift drivers that a simple honk is one way to keep pedestrians safer. As I read the post, I thought about how much Kyle does to build online community.
