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Occupational Health and Safety

May 16, 2012

Where does labour law stand on ladder safety?

The Ontario Ministry of Labour recently issued a new position paper on the use of ladders in construction, and workplace safety experts warn employers need to train their workers and assess their sites for risk.

May 15, 2012

American construction organizations aim to create a drug- and alcohol-free industry

Five of the largest construction trade associations in the United States have teamed up to form the Construction Coalition for a Drug- and Alcohol-Free Workplace (CCDAFW). The coalition’s mission is to create a drug- and alcohol-free construction industry by providing companies and organizations with the resources necessary to implement drug- and alcohol-free policies into their business practices.

May 11, 2012

Occupational health and safety week across North America

American Occupational Safety and Health Week, led by Canadian Society of Safety Engineering aims to remind people that safer workplaces must remain a priority.

May 4, 2012

Ontario Labour official reveals details of enforcement blitzes targetting construction sites

At the Partners in Progress conference and exposition hosted by Health and Safety Ontario in Mississauga, the Ontario Ministry of Labour plans several enforcement blitzes over the next year, where inspectors will be sent to workplaces in target industries, including construction.

April 2, 2012

COR is a great opportunity for Ontario contractors, Aecon executive says

The nationally recognized Certificate of Recognition (COR), an occupational health and safety audit program, is a great opportunity for Ontario, said Mike Archambault, vice-president of Safety and Loss Control with Aecon.

March 23, 2012

Bowie Contracting helps draft regulations for suspended access equipment

As it concerns your March 9, 2012 story “Ontario Needs Safety Champions” we could not agree more, and feel when something positive and proactive is done and is being done in this industry it needs to be recognized and needs to get put out there.

March 9, 2012

Ontario needs safety champions: labour minister

In a new inspection blitz enforcing the Occupational Health and Safety Act, Ontario Ministry of Labour inspectors are targetting construction trades in high-rise and low-rise formwork and masonry, siding and built-up roofing work. The blitz was announced by Labour Minister Linda Jeffrey and Chief Prevention Officer George Gritziotis at an Amacon Construction Ltd. site, Parkside Village Condos, near Square One in Mississauga, Ontario, west of Toronto.

March 8, 2012

Sarnia, Ontario Bluewater hospital certified LEED NC

An ambitious $214 million redevelopment and expansion project at Bluewater Health in Sarnia has achieved Leadership in energy and environmental design NC (new construction and major renovations) certification. Infrastructure Ontario and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care worked with Bluewater Health and EllisDon to redevelop the hospital.

March 7, 2012

Ontario Ministry of Labour announces construction safety enforcement blitz

On March 1, the Ontario Ministry of Labour inspectors began visiting construction projects employing workers in the five targeted trades. The trades targeted are highrise formwork, low-rise formwork and masonry, siding and built-up roofing work.

February 23, 2012

Hamilton-Halton Construction Association recognizes health and safety achievements

The Hamilton-Halton Construction Association (HHCA) has saluted the health and safety achievements of eight member firms in its annual awards program.

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.