OSSA Support Line:
1-888-478-OSSA (6772)
A survey released by the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center found that one in three young workers working in retail/service industry jobs across the United States claimed to have received no safety training whatsoever.
47 percent of teenagers working in grocery stores and restaurants had performed duties - including operating dough mixers and food slicing machines - that cannot legally be undertaken by anyone younger than 18. Many of those surveyed said they had served or sold alcohol - something else they are prohibited from doing.
According to Ontario's Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), last year in Ontario just under 350 workers lost their lives due to injuries and illnesses, and more than 277,000 suffered from injuries or illnesses in the workplace. Some people would label these as "accidents".
The WSIB is sending out a strong message that in the workplace, there is no such thing as an accident. Each of these so-called workplace "accidents" could have been prevented.
In a new social marketing campaign launched this October, the WSIB wants to change the way people think. The message: Workplace injuries and fatalities are unacceptable, intolerable and 100% preventable. With the aim of making Ontario's workplaces the safest in the country by turning awareness into action, the campaign is spreading the word via television, print, transit, outdoor and website advertising.
An important component of this new campaign is the launch of an extensive new website, www.prevent-it.ca, which presents information about the prevention of workplace injuries and illnesses. In a unique and creative way, the site informs employees, supervisors, workers, health and safety committees, teachers and parents of their rights and responsibilities for workplace safety.
To find out how you can make a difference, visit www.prevent-it.ca
Ontario Border crossings at record lowBorder crossings into Ontario by foreigners hit a record low in January, with travellers from the United States making an estimated 1.2 million trips to Canada through Ontario border crossings in January, a 15.3 per cent drop from December.
Same-day car travel to Canada by U.S. residents fell to 961,000 trips, down 12.3 per cent from the previous month. Overnight travel to Canada by U.S. residents fell 7.1 per cent to 1.1 million trips.
Available from Statistics Canada CANSIM: tables 427-0001 to 427-0006.
The January 2007 issue of International Travel, Advance Information, Vol. 23, no. 1 (66-001-PWE, free) is now available from Statistics Canada.
Retail Trade, January Despite a downturn in sales of automobiles and gasoline in January, especially in Ontario, retail sales fell back only slightly from the previous month's high.
Total retail sales fell 0.2% in January to an estimated $33.4 billion, mainly due to the 2.4% sales decline in the automotive sector. Excluding the automotive sector, retail sales rose by 0.9%.
Available on CANSIM: tables 080-0014 to 080-0017.
The January 2007 issue of Retail Trade (63-005-XWE, free) will soon be available.
Ontario Companies Blamed in Death of Zellers worker Two Ontario lighting companies have been found partly responsible for an accident at a Zellers store in Montreal that led to the death of a worker who was changing a light fixture. The Quebec workplace health and safety commission has ticketed the lighting companies, Relamping Services Canada Ltd., based in Brampton, Ont., and subcontractor Samuel's Signs & Lighting, of Kitchener, Ont., for safety infractions.
The two lighting companies have since revised their safety standards.
Hotel Fire Safety Regulations Take Effect January 1, 2007 On January 1, 2007 changes to the Ontario Fire Code took effect, impacting all hotel and motel properties with more than four guest rooms.
Ontario Regulation 144/06, amending the Fire Code to consolidate comprehensive fire safety requirements for hotels came into force on January 1, 2007.
Effective that date, the Fire Code now applies to hotels in its entirety. In addition, Section 9.9 of the Fire Code contains mandatory retrofit requirements for existing hotel establishments with a compliance period phased in over 5 years. For more information, please visit ORHMA
Between 1993 and 1999, an average of 107 million violent crimes were committed against people while they were in the line of duty. Another statistics says that although Canadians are rarely killed in violent incidents, they are often injured as a result of a violent act
OSSA's new hazard module focuses on violence in the workplace. Check out the product details here.
The Standard First Aid & CPR Training course teaches an approach on how to manage medical emergencies and render life saving care until professional help arrives.
This course is required for workplaces in Ontario employing six or more workers in any one shift at a work area or anyone interested in gaining first aid knowledge and skills. (Required under WSIB Regulation 1101). For more details, please visit our Training Section.
Basic Certification Training Package draws on and incorporates the client feedback and experience that OSSA has derived over recent years,adding significant improvements in content and design including usability; strong visual enhancements with new diagrams, pictures and tables; redesigned content and interactive exercises, with an overall aim of making the product a more effective training tool. For more details please check out the Certification Part I product page.
August 7, 2008
Hazard Summary
A worker was fatally injured when working in proximity to a Battery Bull battery lifting device in a warehouse. The worker suffered fatal injuries after being pinned by the moving ‘bridge’ (used to position the battery positioning magnet) and the frame of the battery compartment.
The device is an automated battery handling machine that deploys a magnet to extract or position batteries from or into forklifts and similar battery operated equipment, pulling or pushing them onto the battery storage compartment. Pinch points may be present at the rack and pinion system along which the bridge moves, at the base of the machine between the frame and the elevating battery compartment, and between the bridge and the machine frame.
The machine is operated by a worker from the driving/control cabinet at the front of the machine. The operator is able to drive in the forward or reverse directions (the operator always stands facing forward) along a track, and the main battery compartment is capable of elevating (similar to a scissor lift) to allow batteries to be extracted from or positioned on a multi-level battery charging area.
Location and Sectors
All locations and sectors where forklifts and similar battery operated equipment are used. Battery Bull units are constructed for their specific application at the premise in which they operate. As a result, operation of the device may differ from premise to premise.
Applicable Legislation
Sections 24 and 25 of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments (Reg. 851) require that equipment be guarded to prevent access to a moving part or pinch point. Workers who work in close proximity to the Battery Bull may be endangered by the pinch points on the device.
Section 20 of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments (Reg. 851) requires that barriers, warning signs or other safeguards be used where vehicle or pedestrian traffic may endanger worker safety. The structure of the equipment and location of the driving/control cabinet has the potential to impede the operator’s view of the path of travel and the machine is quiet when in operation, which may prevent pedestrians from hearing the device.
Section 12 of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments (Reg. 851) requires that clearances between a moving part of any machine or any material carried by the moving part of the machine and any other machine, structure or thing be adequate to ensure that the safety of any worker in the area is not endangered.
Sub Section 45(a) of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments (Reg. 851) requires that material, articles or things required to be lifted, carried or moved, be lifted, carried or moved in such a way and with such precautions and safeguards as will ensure that the lifting, carrying or moving of the material, articles or things does not endanger the safety of any worker.
The requirements of Sections 51 and 52 of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments (Reg. 851) apply as the Battery Bull is considered to be a lifting device as defined in the Regulations for Industrial Establishments.
Additional Considerations
Where a Battery Bull battery lifting device is in operation in close proximity to other workers, measures should be taken to comply with the requirements of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments noted above, in addition to the requirements of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
As the operator’s compartment is fitted with an interlocked gate, the requirements of Section 7 of the Regulations for Industrial Establishments would apply and a Pre-start Health and Safety Review should be conducted prior to commissioning this device.
Other References
CSA Standard Z432-04 Safeguarding of Machinery
CSA Standard B354.2-01 Self-Propelled Elevating Work Platforms
Information on the operation of lifting devices can also be obtained from Safe Workplace Associations.
McGuinty Government Launches online Workplace H&S Training program for Colleges & Universities
The Ontario government is launching an on-line program called WorkSmart Campus to help make workplace health and safety a priority for Ontario’s future leaders.
WorkSmart Campus is an e-learning computer program aimed at preparing college and university students who will be future workplace leaders by giving them health and safety knowledge, skills and values. Its goal is to prepare graduates, especially in business and engineering, to manage their organization’s health and safety program as they would manage other business functions such as quality and productivity.
The program, developed by the Ministry of Labour with partners from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), Minerva Canada and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, will be tested at participating colleges and universities across Ontario during this winter and the 2007 fall term. When finalized, the program is intended to be implemented across the province.
As announced on January 2, 2007, Regulations 565/06 and 566/06, will be amending the existing Noise Requirements in the Industrial Establishments, O. Reg 851 and the Oil and Gas-Offshore, O. Reg. 855, effective July 1, 2007.
The new Regulations revoke the current noise provisions in both regulations and replace them with an 8-hour time-weighted average exposure limit of 85 dBA, Lex,8 (based on a 3 dB exchange rate). Protective measures to protect worker’s hearing, as well as warning signs, are also required.
A guideline is being developed by the Ministry of Labour to assist industry to prepare for these changes and be in compliance with the new provisions by July 1, 2007. The purpose of the Guideline is to provide workplace parties with guidance on the new requirements. The Guideline will not prescribe how an employer must develop and implement specific components, however, it answers common questions about the regulatory provisions. Please click here for further details.
A new study by The Centre for Study of Living Standards, a non-profit organization based in Ottawa has highlighted that the Canadian worker fatality rate is disproportionately high. Every working day in Canada an average of five workers die from work-related incidents or illnesses.
The report noted that 1,097 work-related deaths (including 557 from occupational illnesses) occurred throughout Canada in 2005. The figure for 2004 was 928.
Ontario, Quebec and BC had the highest number of work-related deaths – 412 in Ontario in 2005, Quebec with 223 and British Columbia with 189.
Fishing and trapping are the most dangerous industries in Canada, followed by mining, quarrying and oil drilling, logging and forestry, and construction.
The full report can found here.
This glossary provides a quick reference to common health and safety terms used throughout the Six Step Guide to Health and Safety.
You are responsible for ensuring that contractors have sufficient personal liability/compensation insurance.
