June 22, 2010

Construction Safety Network, Construction Safety Association of British Columbia vote to merge

RICHARD GILBERT

staff writer

VANCOUVER

The two construction safety associations in B.C. have almost completed a merger to establish a single society to provide industry specific health and safety services.

The Construction Safety Network (CSN) and the Construction Safety Association of B.C. (CSABC) held separate meetings on June 14 at the Delta Airport Inn in Richmond to consider a motion to amalgamate.

The motion presented was passed unanimously by both the CSN and CSABC boards of directors.

“The vote went extraordinarily well,” said Dorothy Barkley, the interim general manager overseeing the merger.

“It is a new era for construction safety in B.C., with the amalgamation. The single organization is poised to grow and extend its reach throughout the construction industry in B.C.”

The legal paper work to create the new association, the B.C. Construction Safety Alliance (BCCSA), was filed on the same day as the vote.

“This is not anything new,” said Cathy Lange, former executive director of the CSABC. “We have been working on this for two years and a lot of this was lined up in advance.”

The new association will work in partnership with WorkSafeBC.

“I think this is a very positive step forward for the industry,” said Stephen Torrence, former CEO of the Construction Safety Network.

“There is no longer any question about who is providing the service. It may seem like a small thing in terms of where to place the question. Now they know where to place their questions.”

Torrence said he believes in the quality of the staff of both safety associations.

“The authority is now unified and in that unification the industry is much stronger,” he said.

The first board meeting of the new association was held immediately after the vote.

The new board is made up of eight members from each current safety association.

Barkley said the new board has been meeting informally and are willing to work together.

Torrence and Barkley said the legal name, bylaws, business plan, budget, organizational structure and governance policies for the new association have already been outlined.

The new board and association will inherit any contracts, assets and liabilities of the previous two associations.

“It is very significant to have one organization to improve safety in the province,” said Don Schouten, manager of industry and labour services at WorkSafeBC.

The new bylaws say a contractor who is a registered employer with WorkSafeBC or a member in good standing with any supporting organization is eligible to be a member of the BCCSA.

The approval of the new bylaws is expected by the beginning of July, which will make the BCCSA fully operational.

Barkley will remain the interim general manager of the BCCSA, until an executive director is elected at the end of the year.

Executive directors from both construction safety organizations are eligible for this new position.

The BC Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association partnered with WorkSafeBC to found the BC Road Construction and Maintenance Safety Network in April 2001.

The organization was dedicated to safety in the road construction and maintenance industry.

The focus of the CSN shifted to a broader range of construction when the ICBA became part of the organization in 2004.

Supporting organizations for the CSN include: the Aggregate Producers Association of BC; the B.C. Ready-Mixed Concrete Association; the B.C. Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association; the B.C. Construction Association’ the Council of Construction Trades Associations and the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association as well as others. Supporting organizations for the CSABC include: the Council of Construction Associations; B.C. Construction Association; BCCA North, Vancouver Regional Construction Association and others.

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