The reason it seems as if so many governments are staging “safety blitzes” is because they are. And the reason they do so is simple; it’s because they work.

Think about it; if companies are aware of a safety blitz, they are more likely to get their house in order, so as to pass inspection. That’s a good thing for everyone concerned. But if the companies are unaware of, or don’t care about, the safety blitz, inspectors will catch them violating rules and regulations, which is good for workers, but not so much for companies.

One glaring example of the latter came during a road safety program in Winnipeg this summer. Winnipeg police and Manitoba’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance conducted a blitz of heavy trucks (over 4,500 kg) from June 1-5, and July 27-31.

The actual results of the blitz are startling. Winnipeg police released the number on August 6, and they showed that 62% of the 321 trucks stopped failed to pass inspection. Of that number, half — or 32% of all trucks inspected — were immediately pulled off the road for “serious mechanical defects.” In addition, inspectors issued 53 tickets during the blitz. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of these results is the assertion by Winnipeg police that the numbers are not much different than those they usually see.

Manitoba’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance plans to send inspectors out on a regular basis, with larger blitzes conducted two or three times a year, so trucking companies may want to keep a better eye on their trucks.

A young Alberta landscape worker was killed last week when he was struck by a vehicle just as he wrapped up a job in Edmonton. The accident happened just days short of his 19th birthday.

The accident happened as the employee of Land Tec Landscaping Contractors Ltd was picking up traffic pylons behind a company truck, according to Alberta Employment and Immigration (AEI). The truck was slowly backing up in the left northbound lane, close to a median that separated north and southbound lanes, when the worker was struck by a northbound vehicle and fatally crushed against the back of the landscape truck.

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) is investigating the accident along with AEI. According to their preliminary investigation, the worker had just finished planting shrubs and trees and performing maintenance duties on the grassy median. Land Tec Landscaping Contractors had been contracted by the City of Edmonton to perform the work.

Of course, this accident occurred just before Alberta Transportation announced that the number of traffic fatalities decreased from 456 to 410 between 2007 and 2008, a reduction of about 10.5%, despite the fact that the number of traffic collisions increased 2.7% during the same period.

The Ontario Ministry of Labour has brought charges against Sunrise Propane Energy Group, nearly a year after a huge explosion that killed two people and left thousands temporarily homeless.

The two charges, alleging violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, are based the company’s failure to protect the health and safety of workers and to ensure their Downsview propane facility was operating in accordance with industry regulations. The company faces fines of up to $500,000 per charge, or as much as $1 million in total.

Last August 10, an early morning explosion at Sunrise Propane’s Murray Rd. facility sent mushroom clouds high into the sky, tossed people out of bed, blew open windows and doors, and forced thousands of residents to evacuate the surrounding neighbourhood.

As a result of their complex year-long investigation, the Ministry of Labour alleges that the company failed to provide instruction and supervision on “safe work practices and recognition of hazards associated with propane storage, dispensing and handling, and on appropriate emergency response to propane leaks,” and that they also “failed to take the reasonable precaution of ensuring that a propane facility was installed and operated in accordance with regulatory requirements and safe industry practice.”

The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office is still investigating the fire, and could possibly bring additional charges, as well. In addition to the possible fines, a $300 million class action lawsuit, representing 3,000 displaced residents against Sunrise Propane and Teskey Concrete Co. Ltd., the owner of the land, awaits certification by a judge.

Believe it; not following all applicable regulations, and failing to train your workers thoroughly can be very expensive indeed.

Throughout the month of August, the Ontario provincial government plans to continue its efforts to reduce workplace injuries by continuing its Safe At Work Ontario campaign, and conducting safety blitz inspections focused on the placement of concrete at construction sites. Specifically, occupational health and safety inspectors from the Ontario Ministry of Labour will focus on hazards related to the design, erection and dismantling of forms used in the placement of concrete at such sites.

Their plan is to concentrate much of their energy on a wide range of hazards related to formwork. Some of the hazards they are most interested in identifying include those conditions that could result in workers falling or being injured in trenches and excavations. They will also be looking to identify those situations that could result in a worker being electrocuted, or being seriously injured or killed by vehicles and equipment. They will also take a look at workplace ergonomic issues, as well. The inspectors, as always, will take a zero-tolerance approach to violations of health and safety regulations in these areas.

The overall goal of the Safe At Work Ontario safety blitz program is to increase productivity in Ontario’s economy, as well as to reduce the stress and strain on its health care system, by reducing workplace injuries.

According to the Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, construction formwork and demolition resulted in a lost-time injury rate more than 2.5 times the overall average for construction work in 2008. A previous compliance program by the Ministry of Labour from 2004-2008 reduced the annual workplace injury rate 20%, resulting in savings of about $5 billion in direct and indirect cost to the economy.

The fines are definitely getting more serious. WorkSafeBC has smacked two companies with fines totaling $315,343.71, among the highest ever imposed, stemming from an incident resulting in the death of a crane operator, who was killed while working on the Canada Line.

The incident happened on Jan. 21, 2008. Andrew Slobodian, a 22-year-old crane operator, was using a small carry-deck crane, as part of an ironworker crew installing bike path components onto the Vancouver side of the North Arm Bridge. As he attempted to move a load from the front deck of the crane to the bike path below by swinging it over the bridge guide-way, the crane tipped over on its driver side. Slobodian attempted to exit the rear of the crane, but he was pinched between the crane and the guide-way’s wall and was killed instantly.

A WorkSafeBC investigation released in 2008 found that Slobodian had not been sufficiently trained for the job he was doing. They also found that load weights were not clearly presented and there was no effective system to measure operating radius. Ironworkers Local 97, Slobodian’s union, disagreed with the findings of inadequate training and supervision, suggesting it was just a tragic accident.

Slobodian’s employer, SNC-Lavalin Constructors (Pacific) Inc. & Rizzani de Eccher Inc., a joint venture doing business as RSL Joint Venture, received a penalty of $233,535, while the project’s prime contractor, SNC-Lavalin Constructors (Pacific) Inc., was hit with a penalty of $81,808.

According to WorkSafeBC, the criteria for a discretionary penalty — a fatality arising from a high-risk violation committed willfully or with reckless disregard — were met in this case, which allowed for a larger penalty. And the penalty wasn’t as high as it could have been. The maximum penalty amount for a violation is adjusted yearly, and is currently $519,000.

In yet another sign that safety authorities are getting serious about hitting companies harder, financially speaking, gold exploration company Conquest Resources Ltd., was fined $130,000 last week for violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) in the death of a worker.

In December 2007, Conquest hired an independent contractor to build an ice road on Sturgeon Lake, two hours north of Toronto, in order to service the company’s drilling activities. The accident in question happened on Christmas Eve, when the worker drove onto the lake alone to begin plowing. He fell through the ice and drowned.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found the worker was not given any current, accurate information about the thickness of the ice.

Conquest Resources Ltd. pleaded guilty under the OHSA to failing, as an employer, to provide information, instruction and supervision to a worker to protect his health and safety. The $130,000 fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Raymond Zuliani. In addition to that fine, the court imposed a 25% victim surcharge on the total, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

The next time you consider sending someone out to do a job without making sure he or she has all of the training and information they need, ask yourself if it’s worth the life of the worker and $162,500.

If you think something like suffering through a strike will exempt your company from scrutiny during a safety blitz, think again.

The Ontario Ministry of Labour has announced that Vale Inco mines will be included in their safety enforcement blitz activities in September, during which they will look for hazards involving live electrical equipment at mines. This is despite the possibility that 3,100 Vale Inco mine workers may still be on strike by then. The Ministry points out that no mines will be exempt from inspection. There could also still be workers in place maintaining the mines. The point they would like to make is that no one is exempt from the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

The ministry routinely conducts safety blitzes, usually every month or so, in which they closely inspect such aspects of workplaces as ladders, ergonomics and cranes. In September, inspectors are scheduled to concentrate on electrical equipment and practices at underground mines, surface plants and aggregate operations across the province. According to a ministry press release, working on live, energized electrical equipment is a major safety hazard, and most electricity-related injuries to workers occur while they are performing their duties near equipment with electrical hazards. One of the main problems occurs when workers who install or maintain electrical equipment fail to turn off the power before working on that equipment.

In Ontario, there have been 70 electricity-related fatalities in all sectors during the past nine years, including 34 workers who had been working near exposed electrical equipment, 29 who had been working on energized equipment and seven who had been working on faulty equipment. In addition, many workers suffer burns from “arc flash incidents” (electrical explosions). In 2008, such burns were responsible for seven of 17 critical injuries and 11 of 83 non-critical injuries.

Although the mining sector saw few injuries related to electrical equipment, inspectors often issue orders to mine employers to improve their electrical safety practices and protocols.

If a safety blitz inspector finds a serious enough violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, each conviction can bring a fine of as much as $500,000. In addition, individuals found to have violated the Act can face a fine of up to $25,000 or up to a year in jail, or both.

And be warned, being on strike will not exempt you.

Sometimes, one has to wonder about the government’s priorities.

Federal employees are concerned over a new development on Prince Edward Island, where it seems the position of local health and safety officer has been eliminated, according to the local Parks Canada employees union. The reason for their concern could very well be the fact that this was the only labour affairs officer (LAO) position on P.E.I. The position was vacated earlier this year when the man who held it moved to another department. The job was posted after the other guy was transferred, and four applicants even interviewed for the position. But the wise folks at Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) decided last month not to fill the position.

What that means now is, if Islanders are involved in a workplace accident or have concerns about a hazardous work environment, they must report it the LAO in Moncton. This has many federal government employees up in arms. Members of Parks Canada Employees Local 90023 have joined forces with their counterparts in the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) to demand the federal government bring the position back to P.E.I.

Strangely, this isn’t the first time this position has been vacated by HRSDC. A year ago, the job was up for grabs, and the department chose not to staff it and to use the Moncton office to cover P.E.I.’s health and safety needs. When workers rose up, however, the position was eventually filled, albeit temporarily.

The workers and the union want everyone involved to understand the risks involved in such a move. Will it take one worker being involved in a serious accident for the P.E.I. government to get it? There are currently more than 3,500 employees there; it’s hard to believe that the government is willing to take a bet that no one will get hurt in the absence of an enforcement officer.

It would seem as though authorities are starting to issue heavier fines for safety violations. This past week, for example, SNC-Lavalin Power Ontario Inc., was fined $300,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) after a worker was killed.

The incident that led to the fine occurred on October 3, 2007, as the company was building an electrical plant in Toronto. It had subcontracted another firm to provide carpentry, electrical and plumbing services. An apprentice electrician employed by the subcontractor was working with two journeyman electricians to install temporary lighting when the apprentice removed the inside cover panel of a live 600-volt transformer. The apprentice then contacted the taps within, and was electrocuted.

A Ministry of Labour investigation discovered that the electrical panel was not tagged or locked out, as was required under OHSA. In addition, inspectors found that, while both the company and subcontractor had lockout policies in place and SNC-Lavalin had conducted an orientation for subcontractors, company records did not demonstrate that the electrical crew had been given detailed training or a copy of either company’s policy. Of course, the investigation also concluded that the SNC-Lavalin site-specific policy was not fully implemented at the time of the incident, in any case.

SNC-Lavalin Power Ontario Inc. pleaded guilty under the OHSA to failing to ensure that its subcontractor implemented a tag out and/or lockout procedure to ensure workers were protected from shocks and burns. The fine was imposed by Justice Robert Bigelow. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25% victim fine surcharge on the total, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

That’s $375,000 altogether, when you include the 25% victim surcharge, for not following the company’s policies, as well as OHSA regulations designed to keep everyone safe. If the size of this fine is indicative of what might happen in the future, companies should be asking themselves whether not paying proper attention to safety is worth a $375,000 hit.

Quebec-based logistics services provider Katoen Natie Canada was fined $70,000 last week in the Ontario Court of Justice for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) after a worker was injured in an incident in Corunna. Ontario.

The incident in question occurred on June 21, 2007, at the company’s warehouse in Corunna. At that time, a forklift operator was using an electric reach truck to lift and pull cartons from storage racks. When the worker backed into a steel rack, the worker’s leg was broken when it became trapped between the truck and the racking.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the worker was a certified lift truck operator, but was not certified for the machinery involved in the incident. It was also determined that worker’s supervisor was not monitoring the worker at the time of the incident.

Katoen Natie Canada pleaded guilty under the OHSA, specifically Ontario Regulation 851, Section 51(2)(a), to failing, as an employer, to ensure the worker was competent to operate the lifting device or was accompanied by a competent person while operating the lifting device.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Marsha Miskokomon. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge on the total, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.