February 27, 2013

Are you as safe as you think?

Safety First | Mike McKenna

Are you as Safe as you Think is the theme of this year's (NAOSH) Week and is supposed to make companies and workers that may have fallen into that pattern of safety complacency think about their health and safety in a new way.

Participating benefits your entire organization.

Enlisting workers to help with the planning and running of safety training or fun activities encourages teamwork, builds morale and gives them opportunities to learn about the importance of workplace health and safety.

A more cohesive, happy team can increase productivity, which gives your organization an edge over its competitors.

Running a NAOSH Week event or campaign can also help your organization prove the effectiveness of its health and safety program, which can be an added bonus when dealing with prospective clients or regulators.

Submitting and winning a NAOSH award provides provincial recognition and can also help your company stand out from the competition.

NAOSH Week activities are also easy to organize.

One company that has had great success in NAOSH Week is Graymont Western Canada Inc.

Graymont won the 2012 NAOSH Week Award in the Best Overall category for two years running, for putting an emphasis on educating its local communities, as well as its staff, about workplace safety.

In 2012 during the week, the Graymont Pavilion Plant hosted students from four local elementary and high schools, who were welcomed with speeches from staff and the local First Nations chief followed by a mine rescue demonstration which had staff zip-lining from the top of one of the buildings into the bed of a mining truck.

Students also learned about the basics of safety, including locking-out and personal protective equipment.

The kids took part in “Injured Olympics” sports to get an idea of what it would be like to have to do everyday tasks after being injured at work, and they drove remote control cars wearing “Fatal Vision” goggles to learn the dangers of drunk driving.

They also arranged for WorkSafeBC Injured Worker speaker Nick Perry to talk to students at two local high schools, and hosted a health and wellness fair for workers, followed by a barbecue lunch.

Ira Harry of Graymont Western Canada Inc. spoke about why they participate in NAOSH Week:

“Graymont produces quick lime and is the second largest producer of lime in North America. In our area, there’s a lot of youth that go into mining, the lumber industry, basically all the heavy industries and there’s not a lot of safety taught in high school before they take these summer jobs, so (NAOSH Week) was a perfect opportunity for us to try to make that happen,” he said.

“I’d say take advantage. It is a very good opportunity for you to expand your safety culture and involve the community at the same time.”

NAOSH representatives have noticed B.C.’s participation.

“B.C. has become one of the most influential provinces in our country leading NAOSH Week in Canada,” said Tanya Steele, president of the B.C. steering committee for NAOSH Week.

“It is building influence in the companies. It builds morale by getting people involved in NAOSH Week. It gets buy-in so employees say ‘this is important to me’. Employers like it because it increases production, so really it’s a win-win situation for everybody.”

To learn more about NAOSH Week and how to get involved with visit www.naosh.org

The B.C. Construction Safety Alliance is a proud supporter of NAOSH Week and sits on the B.C. NAOSH steering committee.

Mike McKenna is the executive director of the B.C. Construction Safety Alliance. Direct comments or questions to editor@journalofcommerce.com.

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