Canada
Read the latest articles and insight from Safe Supervisor Canada
WorksafeBC: Former BC Premier Didn’t Ensure Safety at Worksite
A WorkSafeBC report into a roofer’s fatal fall at former Premier Gordon Campbell’s summer residence in Halfmoon Bay, BC, says the premier, who was prime contractor for a renovation there, failed to provide adequate safety measures. Weather Tight Supplies roofer David Lesko, 40, lost his balance and fell backwards through a skylight opening to a foyer floor some 5 ½ meters (18 feet) below. Co-workers heard a loud thud and found the worker lying unresponsive on the floor. He died from his injuries the next day in hospital. While the...
read moreIndonesia Seeks Outside Window Cleaning Ban for Maids
The Indonesian Embassy is calling for a ban on outside window cleaning by Indonesian maids after eight women fell to their deaths from high-rise towers in Singapore between January and early May 2012. The embassy is also calling for a ban on maids hanging laundry from high-rise apartments because of the potential for falling. “It’s upsetting. These are human beings dying for nothing,” Indonesian Embassy Counsellor Sukmo Yuwono told the Associated Press. Of an estimated 200,000 maids working in Singapore, half are from Indonesia. One...
read moreHelp Your Workers Cut Obesity Down to Size
As workers age, they deal with declining vision, hearing, strength, agility and reduced ability to process information. But there is one more factor that can amplify the deficits relating to aging—being overweight or obese. Drew Bossen, an Iowa City, IA, physical therapist specializing in ergonomics and aging workers, says someone in the US turns 50 every seven seconds and by 2015, about 20 percent of the workforce will be age 55 or older. According to Bossen, about one-third of the US population is obese, that is being more than 20 percent...
read moreTransit Ticket Collector Injured During Robbery Attempt
A Toronto Transit System (TTS) ticket collector suffered life-threatening injuries after he was shot in the neck and shoulder area during a recent robbery attempt. The worker, a man in his 50s, was shot through a glass ticket booth at Toronto’s Dupont subway station. The shooter, who did not receive cash from the worker, fired three shots into the ticket booth before fleeing. Two of the bullets struck the victim, who was expected to make a complete recovery after undergoing emergency surgery. The worker’s wife had expressed concern that...
read moreCity Ponders New Bylaws to Curb Airborne Construction Debris
A Canadian city where a young child was fatally struck by construction debris during a windstorm three years ago is reportedly eying tougher building bylaws following another recent incident that involved damage, but no injuries. Michelle Krsek, 3, died after debris from an 18-story condominium/hotel tower under construction in Calgary, AB, became airborne. She was hit by a three-meter (10-foot) long section of sheet metal that came from an improperly secured stack left on the roof of the building. Her seven-year-old brother and father were...
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