VANCOUVER, B.C. – A provincial Supreme Court judge has thrown out an allegation that an asbestos-removal contractor violated a 2012 order to comply with British Columbia’s Workers Compensation Act. According to a news release from WorkSafeBC, the province’s workers’ compensation authority, Judge George Macintosh dismissed the application against Seattle Environmental Ltd. on Feb. 26, although WorkSafeBC had offered evidence of the company’s alleged breaches of the Act. Judge Macintosh reportedly told the Court that the order by Madam Justice Russell had not been set out “in unambiguous terms” and had been too complex and vague for the firm to follow. WorkSafeBC said in the release that it would review Judge Macintosh’s decision in detail and consider appealing the verdict. “WorkSafeBC is committed to the safety of all workers and employers in the province,” the organization stated, “and will continue its efforts to reduce occupational disease and fatalities.”
Category Archives: Occupational Hygiene
Minister of public safety responds to RCMP bullying allegations
FEDERAL – In the wake of recent allegations regarding rampant bullying and sexual harassment of employees at the explosives training unit of the RCMP’s Canadian Police College in Ottawa, federal Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Ralph Goodale announced on Feb. 23 that he had requested a new, comprehensive review of the national police force’s policies and procedures on workplace harassment. Goodale stated he had asked the Chairperson of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission on Feb. 4 to undertake the review and to evaluate the RCMP’s implementation of recommendations in the Commission’s Public Interest Investigation Report into RCMP Workplace Harassment from 2013. “Canadians expect professional and exemplary conduct from their national police service,” said Goodale in a press statement. “I am committed to taking whatever action is necessary to help RCMP members, trainees and employees feel safe and respected among their colleagues and superiors.” The new review is expected to evaluate the RCMP’s policies and procedures in terms of adequacy, sufficiency, appropriateness and clarity, Goodale added.
Federal construction projects using material containing asbestos, unions charge
Less than eight months after Health Canada (HC) updated its public information about asbestos, acknowledging that all forms of it are carcinogenic, word has come out that federally funded construction products are still using materials containing the mineral. Canada is also importing replacement brake pads and linings containing asbestos for commercial purposes, according to information from the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC).
“The Public Works policy and the position of the federal government is that asbestos can still be used even in new constructions,” said Denis St-Jean, the national health and safety officer with the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC). St-Jean could not confirm any specific construction projects that had used asbestos-containing products, but noted that Canada was still importing them.
CLC president Hassan Yussuff told COHSN that federal construction had been using cement pipes containing asbestos. “That’s our understanding,” he said, “and of course, our view is that there have been alternatives on the market for quite some time, so this is entirely unnecessary.”
Yussuff added that alterations of these materials cause hazards to construction employees by releasing asbestos dust and fibres into the air. “When you’re installing pipes, it’s never at the exact dimension that you may want, and sometimes the product may be very safe, but the reality is, workers are cutting those pipes,” he explained. “I don’t know why this would be allowed to continue.”
Michèle LaRose, a spokesperson for Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), confirmed in an e-mail to COHSN that the federal National Building Code still permits construction projects to use non-friable asbestos-cement products.
“The products are not friable. Therefore, the health and safety of employees is not at risk,” wrote LaRose. “When this type of product is used, the information is contained in the asbestos-management plan and workers would be made aware before entering an area where it is present through the property and facility manager.”
She added that the Code allows cement pipes containing asbestos to be used as storm drains or roof drains. “Asbestos-cement pipes normally have a life cycle of 70 years and are often found in tall buildings, since they provide better sound insulation against falling water compared to cast-iron pipes.”
The federal government overhauled the official HC web page on asbestos last June, updating previous information that had deemed chrysotile asbestos less hazardous than amphibole asbestos (COHSN, July 7).
“To be fair, the previous government took a long time to get to the fact that they needed to recognize asbestos as a carcinogen,” said Yussuff. “But they didn’t bring in a comprehensive ban on asbestos use and products imported in this country.”
Both the CLC and the PSAC have been lobbying for the Justin Trudeau government to establish a national registry of buildings that contain asbestos products, as well as one of workers who have contracted disease from exposure.
“It’s still a struggle, federally, to get an adequate list and an updated list of all the buildings that have asbestos,” said St-Jean. He cited the current Saskatchewan public registry as an example “where not only workers and employers who actually lease space for their own offices would have access to reliable information.”
Although the world has known for decades that asbestos is a carcinogen, Canada has been slow to recognize the fact in law and public information. The country was a significant exporter of asbestos for decades, but awareness of the mineral’s hazards has increased in recent years, St-Jean pointed out.
“People are getting more and more aware of the fact that working with asbestos, even if it is encapsulated, that over time, there’s such a high risk that it’s going to be disturbed,” he said. “People don’t want to work in an environment where, if something happens, they could be potentially exposed to carcinogens.”
LaRose said that PSPC was planning to explore alternatives to asbestos for new construction projects and building renovations, but maintained that certain uses of asbestos-containing material were safe and legal.
“The Asbestos Products Regulations… under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act governs the strict use of allowable non-friable asbestos in products in Canada, and PSPC adheres to it,” wrote LaRose.
According to the CLC website, diseases from asbestos exposure kill more than 2,000 Canadians each year, while the number of recorded cases of mesothelioma doubled from 1992 to 2012 in Canada. Worldwide, there is an annual average of 100,000 asbestos-related deaths, the World Health Organization has reported.
“There’s no such thing as safe asbestos,” said St-Jean. “We all know that’s ridiculous.”
Asbestos-removal contractor receives fine, jail time
BROCKVILLE, Ont. – A Bolton-based contractor has been fined $45,000 and sentenced to 30 days in prison for failing to comply with health and safety regulations and procedures for the removal of asbestos. A Jan. 15 court bulletin from the Ontario Ministry of Labour (MOL) identified the contractor as Daniel Lane, whose business, HomeSeal, had provided asbestos-removal services throughout Southern and Eastern Ontario. In Aug. 2014, Lane and one of his employees were contracted to remove insulation from the attic of a house in Gananoque. But the employer had not notified the MOL of the job, nor did he have a written health and safety procedure or post a copy of the Occupational Health and Safety Act at the worksite, the MOL noted. In addition, Lane had not completed the proper training for asbestos removal, and he and the employee did not seal off the rest of the house from the job, post warning signs about the asbestos-dust hazard or provide decontamination facilities. Although the workers wore respirators, they had not been properly trained to use them, and they wore only T-shirts and jeans during the task. A subsequent investigation by the MOL, the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change and the Kingston Police Force found that HomeSeal had illegally dumped 13 large vacuum bags full of asbestos-containing insulation; the bags were not properly sealed and had no warning marks. At the Ontario Court of Justice in Brockville, Judge John Doran found Lane guilty of nine charges on Jan. 14; on top of the fine, Lane is required to pay a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge.
Court fines City of Welland, Ont. following worker’s death
WELLAND, Ont. – After pleading guilty to failure to provide information, instruction and supervision on safe work practices to an employee, the City of Welland has been ordered to pay a fine of $150,000 plus a victim fine surcharge. The sentence resulted from an incident on Dec. 9, 2013, when a City worker had been critically injured while helping to correct a sewer backup, according to a court bulletin from the Ontario Ministry of Labour (MOL). During the task, the employee was struck by a pressure hose that caused multiple puncture wounds on the worker’s body. Treatment at a hospital revealed that the worker had also contracted an infection from the puncture wounds. Despite apparent improvement in the worker’s condition following surgery and antibiotic treatment, the worker died on Dec. 26 of that year. A subsequent MOL investigation found that the workplace had no mandatory written policies or procedures ordering workers not to activate a rodding system when they cannot see the lateral sewer pipe; in addition, workers were unfamiliar with the manual of the Vactor truck involved in the incident and had not operated the jetting nozzle properly or safely. On Dec. 16 of this year, Judge Moira A. Moses handed down the fine at the Ontario Court of Justice in Welland.
Report: workers with job insecurity, stress tend to come to work while ill
Montreal’s Concordia University has collaborated with the University of East Anglia (UEA) in Norwich, England on a recent report dealing with “presenteeism”, or the phenomenon of workers who attend work but have difficulty contributing in terms of productivity.
Published on the website of the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology on Nov. 9, “Going to Work Ill: A Meta-Analysis of the Correlates of Presenteeism and a Dual-Path Model” compiled data from 61 studies of presenteeism and associated factors worldwide. The report found that job insecurity, high work demand and stress are among the most common reasons why people go to work when they are ill.
“There are a number of causes and correlates of this behaviour,” said study co-author Gary Johns, Ph.D., a management professor at Concordia’s John Molson School of Business. “Organizations that have extremely strict absence polices, essentially, if you can use the term, ‘force’ workers to show up when they’re ill. That could be no-paid sick leave or low-paid sick leave, or various kinds of trigger points that build additional punishment.” While such policies may reduce absenteeism, they do so at the expense of presenteeism, he said.
Dr. Johns added that job insecurity is another common factor, as today’s economy is rife with impermanent jobs and contract work. “The more people feel insecure about their job, the less inclined they are to take a day off sick,” he explained. “Attendance is one measure of how they might get more job security or go from part-time to full-time.”
People with financial difficulties are also more likely to go to work while ill, the report found. But Dr. Johns and his co-author, Dr. Mariella Miraglia from UEA’s Norwich Business School, found no correlation between presenteeism and lower pay scales.
The study also noted more positive reasons why workers may attend work while sick. “People who are more committed to the organization, people who are more engaged with their work, people who are more satisfied with their jobs, these people are also more likely to report elevated presenteeism.”
Among the potential consequences of ill people attending work are reduced productivity, the spread of contagious diseases and safety issues due to inattention. Dr. Johns cited a past study that showed that pharmacists were more likely to commit errors when exhibiting presenteeism.
One of the problems of dealing with presenteeism is that it’s often hidden. “Absenteeism, we actually know it’s happening. You’re there or you’re not,” said Dr. Johns. “We don’t know exactly what the physical condition of our colleagues are, and so it requires a little more finesse.” But employers could begin by recognizing that the concept exists and devising policies involving it.
“We need also to empower first-line managers to kind of be aware of this phenomenon and empower them to have some voice about talking with employees about this,” said Dr. Johns. “If somebody has some lower back pain, somebody has a migraine or whatever, if we actually know about this, we can often accommodate this in certain ways. Some employees who don’t normally work from home might be able to work from home for a day when they’re exhibiting symptoms.”
“Going to Work Ill” can be accessed online for US$11.95 at http://psycnet.apa.org/?&fa=main.doiLanding&doi=10.1037/ocp0000015.
Mould, radiation concerns raised at Dalhousie clinic
Nova Scotia’s Department of Labour and Advanced Education (DOL) is investigating a claim that a dental clinic at Halifax’s Dalhousie University has been exposing student workers to mould and radiation.
Anonymous staff members at the clinic recently sent an open letter to local media outlets, expressing concern about the building’s health and safety risks. The letter claimed that high levels of mould had been discovered in the clinic’s basement during an assessment in May.
“The area was closed down and a haz-mat team was brought in to conduct a proper cleaning. However, there was a unit where radiographs are taken, and they failed to close this unit,” the letter read, as quoted in media reports. As a result, at least one dental assistant has been exposed to radiation “beyond acceptable levels,” due to a lack of radiation shields for X-ray operators.
Dalhousie officials did not shut the radiograph unit down until two weeks later, the letter added.
The university did not respond to COHSN’s request for comment by press time, but DOL spokesperson Chrissy Matheson confirmed that the ministry had received its own copy of the letter.
The DOL dispatched an inspector and a hygienist to the clinic to do a preliminary inspection on Oct. 28, according to Matheson. “The media advised us of this individual’s concern, so we did treat that media acknowledgement as a complaint,” she said. “We have legislation that requires us to respond to every complaint that we receive.”
The preliminary inspection found no immediate short-term risks to any staff or students, she added. “They want to do a few more reports and tests and things like that, to determine maybe long-term exposure.
“It’s a complaint that we’re taking very seriously.”
Matheson emphasized that the DOL has a 1-800 number for oh&s complaints, staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “It’s anonymous, and it’s quite responsive,” she said.
“We thought it was a little unfortunate that the staff person felt the need to go to the media before.”
This is not the first controversy that the university’s Faculty of Dentistry has experienced this year. In January, the faculty suspended 13 of its students over a scandal involving a Facebook group in which members had posted misogynistic and degrading comments about female classmates.
Flu vaccines available in two provinces
Both Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia are gearing up for the flu season by encouraging their respective residents to take the flu shot.
According to a statement from the Saskatchewan government, the publicly funded influenza (flu) vaccine has been available since Oct. 19. For the first time in Saskatchewan, pharmacists cans provide free flu vaccinations this year as part of the province’s influenza immunization program. Approximately 200 of the 360 community pharmacies in the province plan to participate.
“We are pleased pharmacists will offer this important service,” Health Minister Dustin Duncan said. “This additional option means increased access, choice and convenience for our residents.”
As in previous years, the free vaccine will be offered through public health clinics across the province and some physician and nurse practitioner offices, the statement added.
In Nova Scotia, the provincial government is urging high-risk groups to get a flu shot as soon as possible. “Vaccination is the safest and most effective way to protect yourself and loved ones from the flu,” said Health and Wellness Minister Leo Glavine.
Workers or people who live with or care for people in high-risk groups include nurses, paramedics, doctors and caregivers. Seniors, children from six months to five years of age, Aboriginal people, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, asthma and diabetes also belong to the high-risk group that is strongly encouraged to get flu shots. Seasonal flu vaccine is available from most pharmacies, family doctors, family-practice nurses, nurse practitioners, many workplaces and through clinics offered by some public health offices.
“Last year, 40 per cent of Nova Scotians got a flu shot, and we hope to see more this year,” said Dr. Frank Atherton, Nova Scotia’s deputy chief medical officer of health. “Our publicly funded immunization program is an important part of the government’s commitment to promote health and prevent illness.”
The province is providing the quadrivalent vaccine recommended by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization. The vaccine contains two influenza A strains and two influenza B strains.
Proper hygiene, such as hand washing and covering noses and mouths when coughing or sneezing, is also important to prevent the spread of influenza and many other infections. People with flu symptoms should stay home and minimize close contact with others, the Saskatchewan government statement advises. Flu symptoms often include a sudden high fever, headache, general aches and pains, fatigue and weakness, a runny, stuffy nose, sneezing and sore throat. It can lead to more severe illness, such as pneumonia, or even death.
Infected worker at lab lacked safety training
A recent report from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) has revealed that a supervisor with the National Microbiology Laboratory (NML) in Winnipeg was infected by one of the diseases that he was researching in 2012 – and that the employee had insufficient safety training at the time.
The report – which has not been released publicly, although the National Post obtained a copy of it before breaking the story on Oct. 4 – was reportedly one of several that the PHAC prepared about lab workers who contract the diseases with which they experiment.
Sylwia Krzyszton, senior advisor of media relations with the PHAC, confirmed to COHSN that the incident had occurred, but could not provide many specific details.
“The pathogen involved was a level 2 enteric pathogen,” said Krzyszton. “Level 2 enteric pathogens include E. coli and salmonella. Naming the specific pathogen would compromise the confidentiality of the person in question.”
Krzyszton added that the pathogens that researchers handle in the NML’s containment level 2 laboratories include those listed in Schedule 2 of the federal Human Pathogen and Toxins Act, which was consolidated in 2009 and last amended in June 2012; the list includes numerous bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa.
“These types of pathogens pose a moderate individual risk and a low community risk, given treatments are available,” she said.
While the incident occurred three years ago, no employees have contracted any laboratory-acquired infections in the period since, said Krzyszton. “Since then, all corrective measures have been taken, including enhanced training, monitoring and oversight.”
Specifically, the laboratory has since initiated a formal safety-training program that is mandatory for all employees and supervisors. The NML now closely supervises all new trainees until they pass the required training courses. “The supervisor completed the required training immediately following the incident,” said Krzyszton, referring to the worker who was infected in 2012.
In addition, the NML has hired a training coordinator who provides information about what specific training courses individual employees need and who points out cases in which workers require retraining.
“Audits take place on a regular basis to monitor adherence to improved practices,” added Krzyszton.
As Canada’s primary infectious-disease public-health laboratory, the NML is part of Winnipeg’s Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health, which is the world’s first research facility to house high containment laboratories for both human and animal health in the same building, according to information from the PHAC website. The laboratory’s purpose is to identify, control and prevent infectious diseases through laboratory surveillance, emergency preparedness and response, training and research.
Media reports have stated that the infected supervisor recovered from the disease within a week. Before the incident, he had never received any training in biological or chemical spills, bio-safety or general laboratory safety, the PHAC review reportedly noted.
“The health and safety of our employees is a top priority,” said Krzyszton.
Disease the leading cause of B.C. work deaths, say new stats
WorkSafeBC, British Columbia’s workers’ compensation authority, has released new statistics revealing that occupational disease has consistently ranked as the leading cause of work-related fatalities in the province since 2009, when it overtook traumatic injuries.
The organization’s annual report on B.C. occupational health and safety statistics, published on Sept. 30, stated that in 2014 alone, 57 per cent of occupational deaths in the province had resulted from work-related diseases. The same year also saw 77 deaths resulting from asbestos-related diseases in B.C. – an increase from 59 in 2013 – amounting to more than one death every five days on average.
The report also revealed that the rate of work-related traumatic injuries causing death had decreased by 68 per cent in B.C. over the previous 25 years, while the rate of deaths from occupational illnesses had steadily increased. WorkSafeBC cited exposure to asbestos as a significant cause of the latter group of fatalities, elaborating that many of the deaths from diseases had resulted from asbestos exposures from past decades.
“Every death at a workplace has a far-reaching effect on the families, friends and co-workers left behind,” Al Johnson, WorkSafeBC’s vice president of prevention services, said in a press statement regarding the new statistics. “WorkSafeBC continues to work with all its industry partners to prevent work-related deaths from injury or disease in B.C. workplaces.”
Every issue of WorkSafeBC’s annual reports highlights a specific issue, and the new, 152-page edition for 2014 statistics focused on work-related fatalities in B.C. In a section titled “Work-Related Deaths”, the report compared the five-year periods from 1990 to 2014; while occupational deaths from injuries decreased from 437 in the period from 2005 to 2009 to 337 in that from 2010 to 2014, deaths from work-related disease rose from 331 in the former to 398 in the latter.
In addition, asbestos exposure alone ranked as the highest cause of occupational deaths in B.C. in 2007 and every year since 2009. In 2005-2006 and 2008, traumatic injuries ranked higher.
A press release from WorkSafeBC about the new data quoted Tracy Ford, co-founder of the Asbestos-related Research, Education and Advocacy Fund, whose father died from mesothelioma less than 20 years after exposure to asbestos at work.
“My dad, Dave, was an electrician in Powell River and loved his job. He always put safety first,” said Ford. “If he had known about the dangers of asbestos and which products contained asbestos, he would have taken precautions. When he retired, he expected to have many healthy years ahead of him.”
The overall rate of work-related deaths in B.C. has declined by 42 per cent since 1990, the report also noted.