Anyone who repairs, renovates, or demolishes older buildings is at risk of exposure to harmful asbestos fibres. By Marnie Douglas, Guest contributor to Speaking of Safety Asbestos was widely used in many building materials until the 1990s, with diminishing use since then. It still poses a serious risk to workers today. In 2022, asbestos exposure […]
A serious injury at a composting facility is a reminder to employers that workers need to be properly trained and show their ability to perform lockout procedures. A new and young worker was seriously injured while clearing composted material out of a large bin in 2020. The auger on the bottom of the bin was […]
One worker was seriously injured while driving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) downhill in a vineyard. In 2020, a worker was seriously injured while operating an ATV at a vineyard. The worker was driving down an 11% slope when the ATV lurched ahead unexpectedly. The ATV and its driver fell down two steep slopes. They landed […]
Safer Spaces raises awareness of sexual harassment in tourism and hospitality workplaces. In 2020, 25 percent of women and 17 percent of men reported that they’d experienced inappropriate sexualized behaviours in their workplace in the past year. More than 25 percent of employees did not feel like their employer had given them information on identifying, […]
An online health and safety orientation course provides an introduction to how to work safely on a construction site. Recently, I spoke with Erin Linde, director of health and safety services at the B.C. Construction Safety Alliance (BCCSA). Erin is the project lead for SiteReadyBC, an online health and safety orientation program that provides an […]
The recipe for safety culture at Vancouver Island Brewing includes safety awards for workers and new risk assessment training for its JHS committee. Vancouver Island Brewing (VIB) is one of the most recent companies to earn the Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence (OSSE) certification They are the fourth brewery in B.C. to do this. (See […]
A new online traffic control course aims to make working around traffic safer for towing and recovery operators. Workers in the towing and recovery industry spend a lot of their time working alongside moving vehicles. Whether they’re towing vehicles from an urban parking lane, assisting stalled drivers, or clearing vehicles from an accident scene, they […]
Students are invited to examine the topic of workplace mental health and wellness in WorkSafeBC’s 2022 Student Safety Video Contest. According to an Angus Reid study, published in January 2022, 36% of Canadians say they are struggling with their mental health. The study also found that 7% of Canadians say they are “barely getting by” […]
Read how to make the most of your safety meetings, so your workers learn and retain health and safety information. Workplace health and safety training starts on the first day of work, with an orientation for new workers. It’s a regulatory requirement — part of an overall health and safety program. I wrote about this […]
Communication, training — and math — are all key for the crews who recover and lift heavy-duty vehicles from challenging terrain. It’s a heavy responsibility that requires advanced math skills. “When you have a 100,000-pound load suspended in the air by a tow truck and have to move it as well, what kind of forces […]
