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Occupational Health and Safety
May 13, 2008
CCA urges college centre funding
As the demand for skilled trades continues to rise, The Canadian ConstructionAssociation (CCA) has called for government funding for a proposed $69 million Environmental Demonstration Centre for Construction Trades and Building Sciences at Ottawa’s Algonquin College.
May 13, 2008
Highway 35 upgrade this summer
Construction work is planned on Highway 35 in the Townships of Algonquin Highlands and Minden Hills this summer to improve road safety and driving conditions.
May 9, 2008
Construction Safety Association of Ontario salutes award winners
The Construction Safety Association of Ontario recently saluted winners of three major awards at its annual general meeting.
May 9, 2008
Aecon Atlantic’s crews expand Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre
Construction manager Aecon Atlantic Group began the two-storey Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre project in August 2007. Completion is scheduled for March 2009.
May 9, 2008
Alberta budget offers more than $8 billion for education, employment programs
The Alberta government will invest more than $1.6 billion in school infrastructure capital support. The money will be used for the development of new schools, upgrading projects and capital maintenance and renewal.
May 8, 2008
Rolling dump truck protest takes to the highway
The Ontario Dump Truck Association (ODTA) organized the rolling protest, which started at Derry and Dixie roads on Thursday, May 8. The ODTA wants to send a message to contractors, excavators, road builders and pavers that they cannot continue to face financial hardships and strain.
May 8, 2008
New York City targets “high-risk” construction sites
Following the resignation of New York City’s embattled buildings commissioner, the Michael Bloomberg administration has announced a US$4 million plan to hire specialized engineers to inspect “high-risk” construction sites citywide and develop new procedures to make the work safer.
May 8, 2008
European Union takes legal action against Italy over growing garbage crisis in Naples
The European Union is taking legal action against Italy over the festering garbage collection crisis in Naples.
May 8, 2008
British Columbia attracts over 1,800 skilled and business immigrants in 2007
Colin Hansen, economic development minister, has announced that the British Columbia government has exceeded its 2007-2008 target of attracting 1,730 skilled workers and entrepreneurs to the province under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).
May 6, 2008
Ontario’s health ministry adopts CCDC2-based guide to bidding and supplementary conditions
In what is being hailed as a milestone, the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has given the stamp of approval to a guide to bidding and supplementary conditions for healthcare projects. The 44-page document was drafted by a task force that included representation from the Ontario General Contractors Association (OGCA), the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) and the Ontario Hospital Association in addition to the legal community.
May 6, 2008
Sault Ste. Marie Construction Association’s health and safety training program grows
With more than 330 students and 23 courses to choose from, the Sault Ste. Marie Construction Association recently completed its second annual health and safety training week. Courses included construction health and safety orientation, first aid/CPR, lock and tag out, aerial man lift, trenching safety, power-actuated tools, fall arrest, WMIS and rigging.
May 5, 2008
Alberta budget injects billions into infrastructure development
The Alberta Budget 2008 unveiled by Ed Stelmach’s government includes plans to inject a massive multi-billion dollar investment into infrastructure development in the next three years.
May 5, 2008
Da Rocha Construction & Paving fined in worker death
A Hamilton-area construction company and one of its supervisors have been fined $75,000 and $7,000 respectively in connection with the death of a worker.
May 2, 2008
Father recounts story of son’s promising life and tragic workplace death at CSAO meeting
Jim Sandford recently drove home the issue of workplace safety to Construction Safety Association of Ontario members by retelling the tragic story of his son’s workplace death three years ago.
May 2, 2008
Vanbots Construction pushes ahead at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre site
Work continues on the M-Wing Shell/P&G Fit-Up at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
May 2, 2008
Older workers’ injury picture tells two different stories: WSIB
When the Ontario government abolished mandatory retirement at age 65 in 2005, the construction industry was given the opportunity to keep willing workers on its rosters longer.
May 2, 2008
Unstable Alberta mountain slope leads to building bylaw restrictions
Exactly 105 years after the top of Turtle Mountain came thundering down upon the valley below in Alberta’s worst natural disaster, provincial officials fully expect history will repeat itself.
May 1, 2008
CSAO considers trimming number of board members
The Construction Safety Association of Ontario will explore different options on how to reduce its board of directors from 66 members to 20.
May 1, 2008
What’s the riskiest part of working on a drilling rig? Getting to the job
The trip to and from the oilpatch is the riskiest part of the drilling business, says the president of the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors.
April 30, 2008
Steel bunker will encase leaking Chernobyl reactor
Twenty-two years after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, work is underway on a colossal new shelter to cover the ruins and deadly radioactive contents of the exploded Soviet-era power plant.
April 30, 2008
Judge orders Prebilt Structures to pay $50,000 in fines
Prebilt Structures Ltd. had pleaded guilty to violating safety rules in connection with the death last year of Claud Adolphus Scully. Scully died as a result of injuries suffered in a fall on a construction site at the University of Prince Edward Island.
April 30, 2008
Fall-restraint maker North Safety Products issues warning
Two fall protection standards issued last year by the Canadian Standards Association have caused concern among end users who worry that their fall protection programs are no longer compliant.
April 28, 2008
Grand Valley Construction Association announces winners of 2008 Building Excellence Awards
Redevelopment of the Hespeler Library, one of the few remaining Carnegie libraries in Canada, netted Melloul-Blamey Construction Inc. a top award in the Grand Valley Construction Association’s 2008 Building Excellence Awards.
April 28, 2008
Tragedy spurs CSAO chief Nicholls’ lifelong commitment to safety
On the 24th national Day of Mourning, the Construction Safety Association of Ontario’s new president still recalls the first workplace death he ever witnessed.
April 25, 2008
Engineering firm calls for shoring up bolts on Boston’s Big Dig
The engineering firm about to complete the Big Dig’s stem-to-stern safety review says that the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority should implement a few more repairs to ensure all the tunnels are safe to the traveling public.
April 24, 2008
Letter to the Editor: WSIB doesn’t reward unsafe employers
“Lost in this public relations forest fire is the established fact that experience rating works, and contrary to the themes getting public airing, it does not reward unsafe employers,” writes reader L.A. Liversidge, LL.B.
April 23, 2008
Vanbots dominates field at McMaster University’s Joyce stadium
Vanbots Construction Corp. plans to complete the $25-million Ronald V. Joyce Stadium in time for McMaster University’s opening football game, to be held May 10, 2008.
April 23, 2008
OGCA offers risk management course for construction managers and supervisors
The Ontario General Contractors Association (OGCA) will offer a new course on health and safety risk management for general contractors from May 5 to 9, 2008 at the OGCA’s offices in Mississauga.
April 23, 2008
Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ study finds public support for better infrastructure funding
More than 90 per cent of respondents to a survey commissioned by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities [FCM] agreed that the federal government should help municipal governments deal with infrastructure issues.
April 22, 2008
Inquest set into death of construction worker
Ontario’s Regional Supervising Coroner for Central Ontario has announced that an inquest will be held into the death of Timothy James DaSilva.
April 21, 2008
New Brunswick government plans changes to legislation regarding inquests into workplace fatalities
The changes to the New Brunswick Coroners Act would ensure a public inquest each time there is a fatality at a woodland operation or mill, fish or food processing plants, construction sites or mining sites.
April 21, 2008
Terasen gets approval for Vancouver Island gas storage facility
Terasen Gas (Vancouver Island) Inc. announced earlier this month that it has received final approval from the B.C. Utilities Commission (BCUC) to begin construction of the Mt. Hayes natural gas storage facility on Vancouver Island.
April 21, 2008
Manitoba vows to cut workplace injury rate
The Manitoba government has pledged to cut the province’s workplace injury rate by about 15 per cent over the next five years, though new statistics suggest there’s a long way to go.
April 18, 2008
Badger Daylighting crew comes to rescue of trapped construction worker
A Badger Daylighting hydrovac truck, similar to the one pictured here, removed almost two cubic yards of material from around a construction worker who was trapped chest-deep in dirt when a well under construction collapsed.
April 18, 2008
Massachusetts governor unveils $3.8-billion bond proposal for repair of more than 400 bridges
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick plans to unveil a US$3.8 billion bond proposal to repair 411 deteriorating bridges throughout the state over the next eight years, a project he will argue not only improves road safety but also pumps cash into the economy to buffer Massachusetts from a recession.
April 18, 2008
Kingston’s construction industry looks forward to another busy year
The construction sector in Kingston, Ontario can expect another busy year in 2008. The military, local hospitals, the city and the private sector are all planning major projects this year, industry representatives heard this week.
April 17, 2008
COCA’s Surplis says WSIB’s unfunded-liability target fails “test of arithmetic rigour”
Council of Canadian Construction Associations acting president David Surplis is skeptical that WSIB’ plan to eliminate the $9.3 billion unfunded liability will work.
April 16, 2008
Workplace Safety and Insurance Board amnesty draws 1,100 new companies
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board’s [WSIB] recently offered amnesty to employers not registered with the board was a success, reports the board chairman Steve Mahoney.
April 16, 2008
Mahoney attempts to defuse furor over WSIB rebate
The recent public furor over Workplace Safety and Insurance Board rebates paid to companies that have experienced workplace fatalities went beyond a rational discussion, says WSIB board chairman Steve Mahoney.
April 15, 2008
Court levies $250,000 fine against film production company in worker death
A Vancouver-based film production company was fined $250,000 last week for the death of a worker who was crushed on a set for the movie Jumper.
April 15, 2008
How employers can avoid liability in disputes over work assignments
Construction industry employers often behave as if they are immune from liability in jurisdictional disputes.
April 15, 2008
Construction association calls for discussion, debate of WSIB rebates
The Council of Ontario Construction Associations [COCA] is appealing for rational discussion and debate on the recent issue of Workplace Safety and Insurance Board company rebates and worker death fines.
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