2009 Spring Edition  
   

Message from the President and CEO

  

WSIB Chief Prevention Officer to speak at ESAO Conference

    
   

Now that winter is behind us, we can embrace spring and look forward to summer.  At ESAO, we are busy getting ready for our conference in May and I hope many of you will attend this event, as we have a fantastic lineup of sessions and guest speakers.   

    

Tom Beegan, WSIB’s Chief Prevention Officer, has been added to the list of keynote speakers at this year’s conference. Mr. Beegan will speak at the opening ceremonies of the event, on Tuesday, May 26th.

 

ESAO Conference Update

 

We asked our clients what they wanted to see at our 2009 conference, to be held at the Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel, and incorporated all of their suggestions into an exciting lineup of sessions and entertainment. We are pleased to announce that ESAO will hold two full-day Professional Development (PD) opportunities on May  25th, 2009. The  PD sessions that will be offered are  WHMIS Train the Trainer and Best Practices in Reducing Violence within Schools: Out of the Corridors and into the Classroom.  ESAO’s Conference will follow, from May 26th to 28th.  This year’s theme is Create, Innovate and Celebrate: Lead the Way in Health and Safety. Here are some of the highlights:

 

Tuesday’s opening ceremony is full of surprises. Let us entertain you with the uplifting sound of children singing and through inspiring messages from speakers.  During the conference, we will hold two panel discussions: Return to Work and Violence Prevention in the Workplace: Best Practices for Safety in Special Education. These moderated sessions will provide you with the opportunity to listen to a carefully selected panel of presenters, contribute to discussions, and ask questions. Our regular series of conference sessions is varied and we have included the targeted hazards in the education sector, such as MSDs, Slips, Trips and Falls, and Motor Vehicle Safety.  Be sure to try out one of the virtual driving simulators offered at the interactive Hazards of Driving session.  For a full up-to-date listing of all conference sessions, please visit our website.

MORE>

    
   

In our last news-letter, I provided an update on the prevention system realignment.  Since that time, much has happened.  On February 19th, the WSIB Board of Directors approved the business plan for the realignment of the Ontario health and safety system, as presented.  The next phase of the realignment work has already begun.  To view the WSIB business plan for realignment, please click here.

 

Ontario’s 12 health and safety associations (HSAs) will merge into four new associations.  One of these new groups, presently called the Government Services entity, will include the Education Safety Association of Ontario, along with the Ontario Safety Association for Community and Healthcare (OSACH), and Municipal Health and Safety Association (MHSA).  The formation of these new associations will be phased in between now and the end of the year.  The Government Services entity will probably be formed by September 2009.

 

                                                        MORE>

        
   

The Dangers of Extreme Hot Weather

 

 

It may not seem like it, but extreme hot weather is coming soon. Now is the time to plan.

 

Temperature changes affect everyone’s ability to perform physical work, carry out routine tasks, make correct decisions and learn new information.

 

Drastic temperature changes, either hot or cold, and sustained extreme temperatures can kill!

    

 

The “I can’t think or do my job because it’s too hot/cold” types of statements are true!  If you are not mentally alert because of the temperature, you can experience or cause an accident.  If you perform physical work that exceeds your body’s ability to cool itself, the result will be a heat stroke.

 

The effect of weather is a result of the combined effects of air temperature, radiant object temperatures, humidity and air flow acting in conjunction with each individual’s ‘neutral’ body temperature.

 

The solution to the problem of having to work in hot environments is to ensure each person performing work under these conditions modifies his or her work procedures, has the opportunity to adjust or become fully acclimatized, and dresses appropriately before starting work.  The combined benefit of acclimatizing and proper dress is a contribution to the change of a person’s ‘neutral’ body temperature range (zone).

 

Resources and addition information are available on the ESAO website.

MORE>

 
   

 

ESAO's Health & Safety Audit

ESAO’s audit has been developed recently to assist our clients in the monitoring of their health and safety program. The audit will allow ESAO field consultants to conduct a review of the operations and policies and procedures of the health and safety program, based on relevant legislation.

Two themes in the recommendations of the audit are that safety must be integrated into all aspects of the business and must be managed just like any other business function, such as producing a product or providing a service.  An inadequate management system leads to poor planning and control. This, in turn, leads to hazardous acts and conditions, poor workmanship, faulty equipment, and poor human relations and working conditions.

The audit, developed specifically for organizations in the education sector, measures indicators that have been shown to be related to injury frequency rates. It incorporates requirements of the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (WSIA), the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) Workwell audit, and the Education Act and Regulations. The audit also incorporates best practices in safety management because studies have shown that the psychosocial aspects of work (job satisfaction, job control, and support from others) may be as important as the physical work conditions in reducing some types of work-related injuries.

The audit stresses documentation of the safety management system.  Good documentation ensures consistent implementation of a process or procedure, facilitates consistency in the quality and integrity of products and services, and can be used as a part of a personnel training program. High-quality documentation results in reduced work effort and improved safety, credibility, and legal defensibility.

Many of the criteria used in the audit, taken from the WSIB Workwell audit, require all the numerous components to be present to receive any credit. The WSIB Workwell requirements are particularly onerous, and the incorporation of these requirements into the ESAO audit have resulted in an audit in which it is difficult to score well. 

The ESAO audit will provide a good indication of how educational facilities would do in a Workwell audit and will help our clients reach excellence in health and safety.

   

 

The Occupational Health & Safety Act celebrates its 30th anniversary

    

As the Occupational Health and Safety Act celebrates its 30th anniversary, let’s take a trip down memory lane to review how far we have come in the field of occupational health and safety. Many important changes have taken place in the field of occupational health and safety in Ontario over the past three decades and have shaped our approach to health and safety today.

Those changes have been a direct result of the need to ensure ‘another’ tragedy does not occur. Initially, the focus of safety in Ontario was primarily industrial. The same can be said respecting our compensation legislation. The Factory Act (1884) changed drastically after an accident in 1964 that resulted in five fatalities. The Industrial Safety Act (1964) became a significant piece of legislation with the introduction of the term ‘safety.’

The next major change took place after the Ham Commission Report (1975), when the Employees' Health and Safety Act (1976) came into effect. The present Occupational Health and Safety Act (1978) made significant changes with the introduction of mandatory Joint Health and Safety Committees (JHSC).

Further Bills broadened the Occupational Health and Safety Act with the introduction of WHMIS in 1987, other major changes in 1990 and most recently, the amendments of the year 2006. Some of the more significant changes include an expansion of the number of offences subject to summary conviction, the authorization of Ministry of Labour inspectors to issue on-the-spot summary conviction notices, requirements respecting asbestos abatement, and new regulations such as a regulation pertaining to needle safety

A more expanded version of the history of the occupational health and safety system in Ontario can be found at:

www.mnsi.net/~wohis/history.html and www.iapa.ca/Main/about_iapa/ninety_history.aspx
 

WSIB to contact clients on the Workwell list

WSIB will soon send out letters to some 1,200 firms that are on the 2009/2010 Workwell list. The Workwell audit program assesses the health and safety programs, standards, practices, policies, and performance of firms in all sectors, including the education sector.

Firms on this year’s list will receive additional information about the program in the coming weeks.   The letters sent to firms from the WSIB are not initially shared with Health and Safety Associations, so there is no advance warning to clients.  If you have received a letter indicating that your firm has been selected for a Workwell audit and would like to request assistance, please contact ESAO.

For more information on the Workwell audit, please visit the information page on the WSIB website. 

   
   

 Health and Safety Success Story: Upper Canada District School Board

The Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB), a very large Board that covers an enormous geographical area all over the greater Ottawa valley area, took a fresh approach to tackle high costs in its health and safety program and reaped rewards almost immediately.  Tracking the injuries and sick leave became crucial to the success of UCDSB.  Buy in from the staff and unions had made this transition almost seamless.  ESAO asked John O’Connor, Manager of the UCDSB Health, Safety and Risk Management department, a few crucial questions about what led to the successful turnaround he encountered in the past 18 months. 

What was the biggest change you made at UCDSB to dramatically turn around your safety statistics  in the year 2008?

There were no big changes in 2008.  Rather, this has been a long-term commitment to OHS in our Board.  Since 2002, we have implemented several programs, policies and procedures with a constant effort to decrease workplace accidents, and keeping inline with the Board’s strategic plan.  Programs that address our three leading causes of accidents were slips/falls, back injuries, and repetitive strain injuries.   We have come a long way in the past seven years as an organization and have seen a steady decrease in workplace accidents.  We have also created a safety culture.  Health and safety in our Board is no longer the binder in the Principal’s office.  OHS is now in the forefront with trustees, staff and students.  Trustees request an annual report to the Board, outline the Board’s performance and initiatives, and engage employees to work safely and to think outside the box.  We have also taken the safety culture to a new level and instilling health and safety in our students.  We have developed three student safety committees that look at student environment, student health and student excursions and activities.  So, health and safety is in our everyday activities and thoughts, whether it be student- or staff-focused.

MORE>

    
   

 

April spotlight: Ministry of Labour Blitz targets musculoskeletal disorders

The spotlight during the month of April is on musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) – a key area of focus during inspections. The Ministry of Labour has launched a MSD Blitz across all sectors in Ontario in order to increase the awareness of the importance of addressing MSD-related issues in the workplace, decrease MSD-related incidents, inform clients of the prevention resources available for access through the health and safety associations, and receive feedback from health and safety associations regarding the impact of the Blitz in each sector.  

MSD will be a major focus during any Ministry of Labour inspection. According to the Ministry of Labour, “MSDs accounted for 43 per cent of all LTIs (lost-time injuries) in Ontario in 2007.” This number is up from 40 per cent in the year 2003. In the education sector, of the total count and costs, the MSD and total lost-time injury count was 38 per cent and the MSD and total lost-time injury cost was 42 per cent in 2007.

All workplace parties need to become familiar with the causes and outcomes of MSD-related injuries and work toward the elimination of such incidents. To learn more about how to decrease MSD-related incidents in your workplace, please browse the MSD initiative page of our website or contact your local area field consultant.

    

 

  

North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week 2009: May 3-9, 2009

    

The theme of this year’s NAOSH Week, Make It Home Safe Every Day!, speaks true to all people who may read this article.  It applies to the student, the teacher, the parents, and all workers in your community who wish to make it home safely  every day.

Sounds simple enough, but we all know it is an everyday struggle that impacts all workplaces in Ontario.  The goal of the NAOSH Week is to get the voice of safety out to everyone.  Post a speed limit awareness machine in a school zone, have a BBQ highlighting your safety committee’s achievements, or hold safety training that week, to reinforce your organization’s commitment to safety.  It is easy once you get started.  For these and other great ideas, check out the NAOSH homepage.  Participation in NAOSH Week activities helps to improve a safety culture and raise awareness about the understanding and importance of safety.  

NAOSH Week is led by the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE).  More information about NAOSH Week can be found at www.naosh.ca or www.csse.org
   

Click the button below to see our course schedule

    
   
 

 

Click here to find your Field Consultant

 

Should you have comments, suggestions, or if you no longer wish to receive the Education Safety News,

please e-mail Katia Grodecki at kgrodecki@esao.on.ca