TORONTO, Ont. – The Occupational Cancer Research Centre (OCRC) has announced on its website that it will be holding a full-day symposium about occupational cancer. The event, titled Preventing the Burden of Occupational Cancer in Canada, will take place in downtown Toronto on Nov. 5 and will discuss the findings of a recent OCRC study, The Human and Economic Burden of Occupational Cancer in Canada, which the Canadian Cancer Society funded. Attendees will hear an overview of the study results, particularly regarding materials like asbestos, radon and diesel exhaust and their health effects; there will also be discussion about the economic effects of occupational cancer, prevention strategies and past successes. Investigators of the study have included OCRC scientists Paul Demers, Desre Kramer and Joanne Kim, as well as parties from CAREX Canada, the University of British Columbia and the Institute for Work & Health, according to the Centre’s website. The symposium’s exact location, as well as speakers, agenda and schedule, will be announced in the near future.
Category Archives: Occupational Hygiene
Nurses’ union wins case against hospital regarding flu masks
An arbitrator has ruled that a Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. hospital cannot force nurses to wear influenza masks if they elect not to get a vaccination shot during flu season, as specified in the Vaccinate-or-Mask (VOM) policy.
Arbitration hearings between the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA), which objected to VOM, and the Ontario Hospital Association, through which the Sault Area Hospital (SAH) had been implementing the controversial policy, took place from Oct. 1 to July 8, according to the final court decision. Arbitrator James Hayes delivered his final verdict in ONA’s favour on Sept. 8, calling the VOM policy a “coercive” tool.
“Nothing in this award is intended to dissuade anyone from the benefit of annual influenza immunization, whatever may be the vaccination efficacy rate in any particular year,” Hayes wrote in the decision. “Where their working lives are directly affected, the interests of employees require consideration, and typically, their unions have recourse to rights arbitration to test judgements that have been made.
“On the evidence before me, I find the VOM provisions of the SAH Policy to be unreasonable,” added Hayes.
Hayes reached his decision based on evidence from six medical experts during the hearings, concluding that face masks were not an effective way to keep employees or patients safe.
“These coercive employer policies do not truly advance patient safety,” ONA president and registered nurse Linda Haslam-Stroud said in a media statement on Sept. 10. “Our collective agreement protects our patients if the medical officer of health determines that there is an influenza outbreak, by ensuring that comprehensive measures are put in place to reduce the risk of transmission to patients.
“The Vaccinate or Mask policies have been highly criticized as [a] symbolic rather than scientifically based tool in the fight against influenza,” said Haslam-Stroud.
The SAH implemented VOM on Jan. 1, 2014, and ONA members countered with a group grievance suit 13 days later. The policy states that all SAH employees “must receive annual influenza immunization or wear a surgical/procedure mask during the influenza season (typically from November to April) when in a patient care/clinical area or when engaged in work-related patient interactions in any area of the hospital.”
“I find that the policy was introduced at SAH for the purpose of driving up vaccination rates,” wrote Hayes. “The policy operates to coerce influenza immunization and thereby undermines the collective-agreement right of employees to refuse vaccination.”
Hayes’ full decision is available from the ONA website at http://www.ona.org/documents/File/onanews/OHA,_SaultAreaHospitalalONAAward_20150908.pdf.
Library survey pinpoints biohazards, understaffing, other employee stressors
The British Columbia chapter of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has completed the first stage of its ongoing study of occupational health and safety at the province’s libraries. The union surveyed more than 500 employees at both public and academic libraries during May and June this year.
Although more than 80 per cent of respondents indicated that they rarely or never felt unsafe at work – with “rarely” defined as “only a few times per year” – the survey also revealed that B.C. library employees are occasionally exposed to biohazards. According to a draft of the survey report that CUPE provided to COHSN, 37 percent of respondents claimed that they had been exposed to excrement or urine. Nearly as many had experienced exposure each to vomit, blood and saliva, while used needles and bedbugs were each cited by more than 25 per cent. Only 31 per cent said that they never encountered biohazards at work.
In addition, 56 per cent of respondents said they felt that staffing levels affected their safety at work. Although 65 per cent were rarely or never required to work alone, nearly half of the ones who did so at least once a month were unfamiliar with lone-worker procedures. Some respondents noted that they felt unsafe when working alone; others felt that their libraries were chronically understaffed, especially on evenings and weekends.
CUPE B.C. library coordinator Zoe Magnus called it “unfortunate” that the media had been focusing primarily on the survey’s biohazard findings. “That’s actually not what motivated the survey, and it’s certainly not the entire content,” she said.
“What motivated the survey was anecdotal reports that we’ve been receiving for years,” explained Magnus, “of increasing pressures on library workers arising from a number of factors, largely cutbacks in all other factors that are impacting library workers.”
Magnus, a former library worker with 25 years’ experience, pointed out that cuts in the province’s social safety nets had eliminated agencies intended to provide services for people needing employment or shelter, driving them to libraries instead. “So we’re getting increasingly a clientele that have greater needs than one would assume if you didn’t work in a public library,” she said. “There’s this increased expectation on the part of patrons that’s sort of creating attention with what it is library workers actually are able to do in a working day.”
Even school libraries are facing similar issues, adding further stress to employees. “The social pressures of bullying have led to kids in schools using libraries as a place of refuge,” said Magnus. “Students are gravitating towards trips to libraries for places of support that we wouldn’t normally have thought that’s the kind of work library workers do.”
The report draft, titled Library Health & Safety, made five recommendations to the B.C. library sector:
- Provide more oh&s training and education;
- Raise awareness of other oh&s issues besides ergonomics;
- Make sure all safety incidents are reported to the respective library’s joint occupational health and safety committee;
- Lobby for minimum-staffing provisions in collective agreements; and
- In libraries with largely marginalized clienteles, initiate special outreach positions.
CUPE’s next step is to conduct follow-up interviews with selected survey respondents for more details on the issues facing B.C. library employees.
“We’re looking at the release of the full report in December,” said Magnus.
New initiative aims to reduce injuries in N.B. waste-collection sector
New Brunswick’s workers’ compensation authority has launched an initiative to improve worker safety in the province’s waste-collection industry. Safe Waste Collection (SWC), announced by WorkSafeNB on Sept. 1, is a strategy aiming to promote safety culture in the sector.
A two-year initiative, SWC will focus on safety education, compliance activities, public awareness of safety issues and recommendations for mandatory safety policies in the industry, according to a WorkSafeNB press release. This month, WorkSafeNB representatives will begin consulting with every single employer in the industry to discuss health and safety procedures and practices.
“As we have done with other high-risk industries, WorkSafeNB is focusing its efforts to help workers in waste collection,” WorkSafeNB president and CEO Gerard Adams said in a press statement. “Waste collectors face risks daily. They have a difficult job.
“We are working with employers and workers to ensure they have the resources and support needed to reduce these risks,” added Adams.
Backgrounder information from WorkSafeNB noted that the province had seen four fatalities in the waste-collection sector since 2003. The organization also claimed that waste-collection employees in New Brunswick were three times as likely as employees in any other sector in the province to become injured at work.
The initiative is a result of consultations between WorkSafeNB and numerous stakeholders, including private waste-collection employers, municipal governments and regional service commissions. Feedback from stakeholders in the industry helped to form the program’s strategies.
Another major aspect of the SWC program will be increased training and orientation for waste-collection workers, WorkSafeNB stated. Next spring, the organization plans to start inspecting industry employers’ facilities and mobile equipment. At about the same time, WorkSafeNB will also launch a public-awareness campaign aimed at homeowners, illustrating how they can help provide a safer job environment for these workers.
Among the ways that residents can help waste collectors, as suggested by WorkSafeNB, are to keep trash bags free from sharp objects and within recommended weight limits and to remove any tripping dangers from curbsides or the ends of driveways. “Your curbside is their workplace,” said Adams.
WorkSafeNB also intends to lobby for those who award work contracts in the sector to base their choices partially on safety policies and procedures. “Like the construction industry,” noted Adams, “we want safety to be a priority in the bidding process.”
SWC is the latest strategy by WorkSafeNB to curb workplace injuries and fatalities in the province. Previous WorkSafeNB initiatives in past years have focused on employee safety in construction, forestry, retail and nursing homes.
More information on SWC is available online at http://www.worksafenb.ca/safe-waste-collection.
Saskatchewan prisons facing “crisis-level conditions”: SGEU
In response to recent comments by Saskatchewan’s minister responsible for corrections and policing, Christine Tell, about overcrowding and violence in the province’s correctional centres, the Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union (SGEU) has expressed disbelief at the provincial government’s reported unawareness of the problem.
In a press release dated Aug. 19, SGEU cited an Aug. 12 story in the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, which reported that Tell had initiated an investigation into inhumane conditions in Sask. prisons. The union claimed in the release that the province’s jails were facing “crisis-level conditions” and urged the government to take immediate action on the problem rather than pleading ignorance.
“We have spoken out again and again about the dangerously overcrowded conditions in correctional centres,” said SGEU president Bob Bymoen, as quoted in the release. “Instead of taking action, the government has delayed the opening of facilities in Prince Albert and at Besnard Lake. They also cancelled an approved remand centre for Saskatoon, which has contributed to the severe overcrowding in all facilities.
“And the government is surprised that inmates are complaining,” added Bymoen.
Bonnie McRae, chair of SGEU’s legal inspection and regulatory, agreed that the investigation was long overdue. “The concerns raised are not new – they have been raised repeatedly,” she said in a press statement. “This investigation needs to be done quickly to address a situation that remains inhumane for inmates and unsafe for correctional workers and communities.”
Tell’s announcement was a response to a letter to the Star-Phoenix written by Saskatoon Correctional Centre (SCC) inmate Cory Cardinal – and signed by 15 other inmates as well as him – detailing the conditions of the prison. Cardinal claimed that the SCC was so overcrowded that prisoners often had to urinate in milk jugs, in Styrofoam cups or on the floor due to unavailable toilet facilities.
“Secure remand units are double-bunked, if not triple-bunked, causing tension and everyday fights over space, privacy, bathroom usage, phone usage and, of all things, shortage of food,” Cardinal wrote, according to a Star-Phoenix report from Aug. 8. “We have broken the law and are paying for it, but must we suffer this inhumane punishment in having to fight over basic necessities and food? Is this not a public health issue?”
SGEU had previously warned about prison overcrowding in July of last year, following a gang fight that had resulted in stabbing injuries at the SCC. Bymoen had said that overcrowding and lack of staff support would likely lead to a crisis in the province’s corrections system (COHSN, July 21, 2014).
“SGEU… has been warning the provincial government about conditions within Saskatchewan correctional facilities for years, repeatedly reporting that inmates are crammed into every available space – sleeping on the floors of classrooms, chapels and gymnasiums – and have limited access to washrooms and showers,” the union stated in the release.
Anthrax detected in northwestern Saskatchewan bison
NORTH BATTLEFORD, Sask. – The Saskatchewan government is warning the provincial agriculture industry to beware the presence of anthrax in farm animals. A July 9 press release from Saskatchewan Agriculture (SA) confirmed that anthrax had been discovered in bison located northwest of North Battleford, where laboratory results had determined that the disease had killed two bison; anthrax was also suspected as the cause of death of seven others. SA cautioned that animals could contract anthrax by eating forage containing spores that have the bacteria Bacillus anthracis inside them. “The carcasses of any animal suspected of having anthrax should not be moved or disturbed,” the ministry said. “People can get infected through direct contact with sick animals or carcasses. In cases where people believe they have been exposed… they should contact their local health authority or physician for advice.” SA also advised farms that have experienced previous outbreaks to vaccinate all of their animals against anthrax and others to consider vaccination if neighbouring farms have the disease.
Health Canada revises public info on asbestos risk
The federal government has recently overhauled its official Health Canada (HC) web page about the risks of asbestos, acknowledging for the first time that all forms of the mineral are carcinogenic.
The new public information, which was posted to the HC site on June 19, replaced the previous write-up dated Oct. 14, 2012. The most significant change is that the current information does not distinguish between asbestos types that supposedly differ in danger levels. The previous information classified two types of asbestos: amphibole, acknowledged as “likely to inflict damage [in the lungs] and cause disease, including cancer”, and chrysotile, previously dismissed as “less potent” due to structural and chemical differences.
“Breathing in asbestos fibres can cause cancer and other diseases,” HC’s asbestos page currently reads, citing asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer as the main risks.
Another telling difference is that the previous information claimed that asbestos fibres caused these diseases “when inhaled in significant quantities,” but the updated information states nothing about quantity, implying that there’s no threshold to the risk.
“You can be exposed to asbestos when a home or building is being renovated or demolished,” HC now says. “Some car parts also contain asbestos.”
But the site also states that asbestos poses “no significant health risks” if the materials containing it within a building’s structure are tightly bound in other products, “sealed behind walls and floorboards” and “left undisturbed.”
This update is the latest development in Canada regarding the public and occupational risks of asbestos. In March, two CBC reports exposed a possible asbestos risk at the Canada Revenue Agency building in Ottawa (COHSN, March 17). In late 2013, Saskatchewan became the first province to enact a law requiring a public registry of buildings that contain asbestos (COHSN, Nov. 18, 2013).
While the federal government has reportedly been downplaying the significance of these changes in the media, stating that they were merely concessions to clarity and accuracy, the move has received some acclaim from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) in the United States, as well as the Occupational Cancer Research Centre in Toronto.
On July 3, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) sent out a media release that supported the HC changes, but also criticized the Stephen Harper government for continuing to back the sale and import of asbestos in Canada through last year’s Bill C-31, which had revised the Hazardous Products Act.
“Though Health Canada’s change in position is welcome, these changes alone are not a solution to protect workers,” CUPE stated. “The real issue lies in both federal and provincial regulations, which are often weak or go unenforced, leaving workers at risk.
“Asbestos continues to make CUPE members sick,” added CUPE in the release. “The legacy of harm caused by asbestos is significant – it’s the largest cause of workplace death in Canada.”
ADAO president Linda Reinstein called HC’s decision “a landmark shift,” according to the Globe and Mail. Reinstein later commented, “I don’t buy this,” on her Twitter account, regarding the federal government’s claim that the asbestos changes were not significant.
“Pathetic and shameful the U.S.A. and Canada haven’t banned asbestos and imports/exports continue,” Reinstein added, calling the two nations “merchants of death.”
More than 50 countries have banned asbestos in all of its forms, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. Canada continued to mine chrysotile asbestos until 2012.
HC’s updated information on asbestos can be viewed at http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/healthy-living-vie-saine/environment-environnement/air/contaminants/asbestos-amiante-eng.php.
Orderly’s resignation letter spurs discussion about healthcare work
TROIS-RIVIÈRES, Que. – A Sept. 2014 resignation letter from a hospital orderly has been receiving public attention from both the news and social media, regarding the state of work in the Quebec healthcare system, since it was posted online on June 18. Danika Paquin quit her orderly job last September due to an “inhuman” amount of work that had threatened both her and her patients’ well-being, according to the letter she addressed to both the management at the Centre Hospitalier Régional de Trois-Rivières and the Government of Quebec. “My profession is destroying me,” she wrote, “as much physically and psychologically.” Paquin described her workload, which she claimed had involved serving between 12 and 16 patients fully in a shift, in great detail, along with complaints from her colleagues. Since Paquin’s mother, Diane Chamberland, posted the full letter on Facebook, it has been shared more than 5,800 times and covered by Le Journal de Montréal and Yahoo! Canada News. “I don’t seek pity; I ask for only a little empathy, listening and recognition,” Paquin wrote. “I’m trying to save my colleagues, as well as patients.”
Personal Protective Equipment Use and Hand Washing among Animal Farmers: A Multi-Site Assessment
Nnaemeka U. Odo and Peter C. Raynor, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; Amanda Beaudoin and Jeffrey B. Bender, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, St. Paul; Ratana Somrongthong, College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok; Joni M. Scheftel, Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul; and James G. Donahue, Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation, Marshfield, Wisconsin
The goal of this study was to compare and contrast the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and the practice of hand washing among participants of four studies assessing poultry and swine farms in the Midwestern United States and in Thailand. This largely descriptive exercise was designed to assess and compare the frequency of these protective practices among the study populations. There were a total of 1,113 surveys analyzed across the four studies. The respondents included workers in direct contact with animals as well as flock owners and veterinarians tending to farms. Hand washing was the most common practice observed among all participants, with 42 per cent “always” and 35 per cent “sometimes” washing their hands after contact with the animals. This practice was least common among Minnesota swine workers. Even Thai poultry farmers, who demonstrated the lowest overall PPE use, reported a higher frequency of hand washing. Mask use during animal farming activities (“always” or “sometimes”) was least commonly practised, ranging from one per cent in Thailand to 26 per cent among backyard poultry farmers in Minnesota. Minnesota poultry and swine farmers had similar frequencies of mask (26 per cent) and glove use (51 per cent and 49 per cent). All other comparisons differed significantly across the four sites (p-values <0.05). The use of PPE in animal farming differed by study location and is likely related to prevalent norms in the respective regions. Overall, the use of PPE did not appear to be influenced by the particular animal (poultry or swine) being farmed. These findings may prove useful to regulating bodies and farm owners in formulating policy or planning strategies for improving personal-hygiene practices in animal farming and preparing for influenza and other potential zoonotic disease outbreaks.
J Occup Environ Hygiene, Volume 12, Issue 6, pages 363-368. Correspondence to: Peter C. Raynor, University of Minnesota, Division of Environmental Health Sciences, 420 Delaware Street SE, MMC 807, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455; email: praynor@umn.edu.
Public-service employees rally nationwide against sick-leave changes
NATIONAL – Federal public-service workers across the nation came together in various municipalities on March 19, to protest against the government’s proposed changes to a sick-leave policy. Organized by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and its provincial and territorial branches, the nationwide rally included events in several cities in every province. “We are coming together to call for a stronger public service for all Canadians,” PSAC national president Robyn Benson said in a press statement on the day before the rallies. “We all reject the Treasury Board’s ‘Go to Work Sick’ plan. Instead, we want to negotiate measures for healthier workplaces.” Background information from the union noted that all federal public-service collective agreements were up for renewal and that cutbacks had led to unhealthy work environments and poor morale among PSAC members. Mental-health claims had been rising in public-service work, and the government had been ignoring buildings in poor shape and toxic workplaces, the PSAC said. The union represents more than 170,000 public-service workers in Canada.