BY TRACEY DUGUAY
There were 594 lost-time injuries recorded by local companies registered with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) in the last year, costing $58 million dollars in direct and indirect costs.
There have also been two workplace fatalities since 2004, with another case pending, which is expected to bump the number to three.
Those were just a few facts presented by WSIB chair Steven Mahoney as he made a stop in Greater Sudbury Wednesday night at a city council meeting.
Mahoney was in town to promote The Road to Zero initiative, which is built on the premise that the only acceptable number of workplace illnesses, accidents or fatalities is zero.
In August, Mahoney attended an Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference to introduce the Community Workplace Heath and Safety Charter.
He presented the principals surrounding the charter to city council and asked for its support in advocating the need to maintain “exemplary workplace safety practices” for all employees in the city.
“We need your help to be champions…to recognize that community safety is certainly about protecting our streets from crime and traffic…but it’s also about workplace safety,” Mahoney said.
In Ontario alone, there were 14 workplace fatalities and over 6,000 injuries during the month of June, according to information on the Road to Zero website.
Mahoney told council that in 2006, 100 people were killed, including 10 of which that were students working summer jobs. Not a week goes by that the WSIB doesn’t receive notification of a workplace-related fatality.
“In fact when I boarded the plane to come to Sudbury, I got notice of a 56-year-old man who died of a workplace fatality,” he said.
There has been a 23 percent decrease in the reported number of injuries in the past few years, he said. However, due to the severity of the injuries, the costs continue to rise because many of people end up “dependant on our system…for the rest of their lives.”
City council supported the charter, with Greater Sudbury Mayor John Rodriguez making it officially by signing a poster-sized version of it that will be hung in Tom Davies Square. They also unanimously passed a declaration to that effect.
Mahoney praised the city for its Year of the Employee initiative, which has resulted in workplace and wellness improvements, and for its work in developing the community as a centre of excellent for occupational health and safety.
“I think the work you have done in this community sets a standard that will be hard to follow,” he said. “You are already champions, I just need you to sing a little louder.”
Mahoney is looking for louder support for the Road to Zero initiative to help offset some of the criticism he has faced regarding the airing of several graphic commercials depicting workplace accidents.
“They’re somewhat graphic, to say the least…they are shocking. I’ve been a little under the gun with some people demanding they be pulled off the air,” Mahoney explained. “That’s not going to happen.”
He wants workplace health and safety issues raised to same level of public awareness as wearing seatbelt, drunk driving and anti-smoking campaigns.
“We want to make health and safety a habit in Ontario for young people.”
For more information on the Road to Zero campaign, visit www.prevent-it.ca/chair/r2zero.html.
