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Occupational Health and Safety

January 24, 2012

Construction access and fall protection equipment continue to be areas of concern

Safe use of access equipment and fall protection continue to be the two major health and safety concerns related to access equipment on construction projects, according to the Ontario Ministry of Labour.

January 17, 2012

Brook Restoration safety training includes swing stage, hazardous materials

Brook Restoration recently opened its own safety centre. In addition to regular safety training like WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System), Brook offers training in aspects such as swing stage, boom and elevated work platform, asbestos, lead, Bobcats and confined spaces.

December 23, 2011

Toronto swing stage tragedy still resonates

The second anniversary of the Dec. 24, 2009 swing stage tragedy that claimed the lives of four construction workers in Toronto triggered occupational health and safety recommendations made by Tony Dean and his advisory panel. One result was the appointment of the province’s first Chief Prevention Officer, George Gritziotis, who appeared with Labour Minister Linda Jeffrey at a news conference in Toronto.

December 22, 2011

Ontario labour department pushes workplace safety awareness

Ontario Chief Prevention Officer George Gritziotis launched the Prevention Starts Here awareness program in Toronto. Raising awareness is one of 46 recommendations made by Tony Dean and his expert advisory panel, which reviewed Ontario’s occupation health and safety enforcement and prevention system.

December 16, 2011

Ontario Ministry of Labour launches workplace safety awareness programs

Ontario Chief Prevention Officer George Gritziotis launched the Prevention Starts Here awareness program in Toronto. Raising awareness is one of 46 recommendations made by Tony Dean and his expert advisory panel, which reviewed Ontario’s occupation health and safety enforcement and prevention system.

December 14, 2011

Canadian Standards Association releases hospital construction protocol

Prior to the launch of Health Care Facilities Standard by the Canadian Standards Association, or CSA, there was no common national standard for the design and construction of hospitals and other healthcare facilities. CSA has had standards in health-care facilities for more than 40 years, but they have been component standards, such as plumbing standards or infection control standards. This is the first overall, all-encompassing standard for health-care facilities.

December 7, 2011

Toronto swing-stage tragedy an important test case: Lawyer

The criminal negligence charges in connection with the fatal 2009 swing stage accident on a Toronto construction site will be an important test case in health and safety law, according to Landon Young, a member of the occupational health and safety practice at Stringer Brisbin Humphrey. In a presentation on Bill C-45 at the Toronto Congress Centre, Young was referring to charges against Metron Construction Corp.

November 22, 2011

Ontario Bill 160 changes safety committee rules, labour guidelines: Lawyer

At its recent employers conference, a Stringer Brisbin Humphrey lawyer told employees how the amendment to the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act will make some labour guidelines useful in court cases and individual safety committee members will now be able to make recommendations without agreement from other committee members

November 10, 2011

Ontario chief prevention officer Gritziotis speaks at trades council convention

George Gritziotis recently spoke about his daily e-mail alerts on workplace safety incidents and injuries at the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario’s convention in Niagara Falls, Ontario. He was recently appointed chief prevention officer, responsible for occupational health and safety, reporting to the Minister of Labour.

November 8, 2011

How Ontario safety law changes affect construction firms

Companies in the construction industry are facing an increase in applications for union certification and the recent Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act changes underscore the importance of responding to safety recommendations from employees, according to speakers at an employment law seminar in Toronto. The 25th annual employers’ conference, produced by law firm Stringer Brisbin Humphrey, was held the Toronto Congress Centre.

January 19, 2006

WHMIS training essential in construction safety

The Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) has been in place since 1988, classifying hazardous products in the workplace and training workers to recognize and interpret safety data.

January 19, 2006

Safety training stepped up in oil sands, chemical valley

New construction projects in both the Sarnia area and in Fort McMurray, Alberta have one thing in common — safety training is a priority for the thousands of construction workers entering area workforces.

January 19, 2006

Prepare your company for increased MOL

Now more than ever, Ontario construction companies need to take a hard look at how health and safety is being managed in the workplace, and take proactive steps to mitigate the potential consequences of Ontario’s enforcement onslaught.

January 19, 2006

New safety audit certificate opens doors

Abiding by new national safety audit standards for all construction sectors will make it easier for small and medium sized contractors to get work outside Ontario.

January 19, 2006

Safety inspectors having a positive impact

The province is making good on its promise to hire additional Ministry of Labour health and safety inspectors to cut down on workplace injuries and deaths.

January 19, 2006

Ontario clamps down on

Construction companies caught violating provincial health and safety regulations in Ontario can expect more than a rap on the knuckles this year as the government toughens its stand on rule breakers.

January 19, 2006

Butting out on the job site

Workplace smoking legislation has largely bypassed the construction industry on the assumption that any smoking takes place in the open air.

January 19, 2006

Musculoskeletal Disorder

The Ontario Ministry of Labour is rolling out a new program to help reduce work-related musculoskeletal injuries. Its Pains and Strains campaign will use a combination of education and enforcement to reduce these injuries.

January 19, 2006

Interior systems contractors boast low accident rates

One group of contractors that doesn’t fear the Ministry of Labour’s move to clamp down on contractors breaking health and safety regulations is the Interior Systems Contractors Association of Ontario (ISCA).

January 19, 2006

Keep your shirt on? It’s not law in Canada - yet

Last year, the European Parliament (EP) was at loggerheads over controversial legislation intended to protect outdoor workers — including construction workers — from exposure to sunlight.

January 19, 2006

On the fringe of nanotech safety

As applications of nanotechnology change the composition and properties of materials construction workers handle every day, questions about worker safety continue to arise.

January 19, 2006

Reporting unsafe work conditions

Ontario workers who report unsafe working conditions to the authorities have the benefit of protection from any reprisals from employers.

January 19, 2006

Electronic safety training gains momentum

Bob Christie, a partner in Edmonton-based Christie Communications Ltd., says safety training has come a long way from the 1970s when a colleague was asked by a manager at a coal mine: “Are we running a coal mine here or a f***ing college?”

January 19, 2006

Not all safety guidelines are created equal

The Illinois-based American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) has released workplace safety tips aimed at helping reduce injuries and illnesses for women in the construction industry.

January 19, 2006

Construction fashions for women

Entrepreneur Elizabeth Johnston, proprietor of Toronto’s Working Woman Workwear, has come up with a better mousetrap: coveralls and other protective clothing specifically designed for the female form.