Health and Safety

Here are the Regional Council reports and teleconference call minutes presented at the April 2015 Regional Council meeting. The Council report is a large file (~9 MB) and available here at dropbox.com

On the National Day of Mourning, the Public Service Alliance of Canada pays homage to all workers injured on the job and who have lost their lives due to unsafe and dangerous working conditions. We honour workers like brother Peter Kennedy, who died soon after the 2009 boiler explosion at a Public Works heating plant, and brother Howard Willems, who passed away in 2012 through exposure to asbestos on the job. Brother Willems successfully lobbied for the introduction of legislation requiring all buildings in Saskatchewan containing asbestos to be reported in a public registry.

On January 20, 2012 an explosion at Babine Forest Products sawmill in Burns Lake, BC, killed two workers and injured dozens more. Just three months later on April 23, 2012 another explosion at Lakeland Sawmill in Prince George, BC, killed two more workers and left others with life-changing injuries and trauma. PSAC BC is joining the effort, led by the United Steelworkers, the workers, and the family and friends of the killed and injured workers, calling on Premier Christy Clark to establish an independent public inquiry to ensure tragedies like these never happen again.

The 2014 Public Service Employee Survey released yesterday continues to demonstrate the negative impact of public service cuts. The survey results also raise major concerns about the continuing problems of harassment and poor mental health in the public service. Despite these problems, most public service workers are committed to doing a good job.

The Programs Section of the PSAC and the PSAC Education Program are launching an on-line version of the Fighting for our Lives; Bill C-4 and Health and Safety course. Visit  - http://psacunion.ca/online-learning  - to access it via the on-line learning section of the national website. It is anticipated the course will take 1.5 to 2 hours to complete and it is set up in such a way that you can leave the course and return to it as you choose or as time allows.The objectives of the course:

As Canadians, when we go to work every day, ride the train, fly in a plane, or enjoy our natural environment, how do we know we are safe and secure? Because behind the scenes, public service workers across this country – like airline and train safety inspectors, accident inspectors, counter-terrorism specialists, flood forecasters and many others — make sure of it.  These workers - members of the Technical Services Group – have one important thing on their mind every day: the safety and security of all Canadians.  

(Ottawa) Domestic violence is following people to work, has a significant impact on performance, and is in some cases resulting in job loss, according to survey results released by the labour movement and Western University today.

The Federal Court has allowed the PSAC’s judicial review application in a case involving workplace harassment.Abel Akon, a PSAC member and employee of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), alleged that his employer engaged in favoritism and that he was harassed, humiliated, belittled and treated with disrespect by his supervisor.  Subsequently, Akon filed a complaint under Regulation 20 of the Canada Labour Code.