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Day of Mourning remembers workers killed and hurt on the job
On September 22, 1971, Pauline Farrell set the table for two, like she always did, before heading to bed. Her husband, Bill Kelly, was working an overnight shift for NB Power and was scheduled to be home in time for breakfast.
Tragically, Farrell was awoken at 3:50 a.m. to devastating news that her husband was killed in an explosion at work. “The priest came to tell me what happened, and when he saw the two place settings, his eyes welled up with tears,” Farrell said. “I was nearly six months pregnant, and my whole life came crashing down when I heard that Bill was dead.”
On April 28, Farrell will be attending her local Day of Mourning ceremony in Moncton. She said she attends the memorial event every year to honour her late husband. Her daughter, who never met her father, attends the Saint John ceremony.
“This is an important event that every New Brunswicker should go to,” Farrell said. “We need to gather together as a community to honour all workers killed, the same way we do for our veterans on Remembrance Day.”
The Day of Mourning is an annual event initiated by the labour movement in 1984 to call attention to workplace tragedies and to improve workplace safety standards. April 28 was chosen as the day of remembrance because it was the day the third reading took place for the first comprehensive Workers' Compensation Act (Ontario 1914) in Canada.
“I believe that remembrance is important. It allows us to express sorrow for the grief and suffering experienced by the victims, and their family, friends and colleagues – and it serves as a reminder that the work being done to improve workplace health and safety is far from over,” said Roberta Dugas, chair of WorkSafeNB’s board of directors. “It is also an opportunity to stand together and pledge to learn from these tragedies and work harder to reduce them.”
Last year, 11,000 New Brunswickers were hurt at work and another 10 lost their lives. Farrell said every workplace death brings back tragic memories. “After 39 years, my heart is still heavy and I think of Bill every day. I have so much to share with him. I can’t even begin to explain the sadness his death has brought to my life, my daughter’s, his family and his colleagues.”
Every workplace accident, not just fatalities, affects lives. Yves O’Brien was only 14 when he was severely burned while working at his father’s garage. The combination of diesel fumes and a wood furnace created a bomb that threw him to the floor, lighting him on fire. His father grabbed him and threw him outside in the snow to extinguish the fire. While the injury took a physical toll on O’Brien, he said the accident was very emotional for his entire family.
“I was in the hospital” for three months and it took 22 surgeries to put me back together,” O’Brien said. “Emotionally, the accident was tough. My dad blamed himself, but I know that without him, I wouldn’t be alive. I’m so thankful.”
O’Brien said he hopes the Day of Mourning will increase awareness and provide education to prevent workplace injuries.
WorkSafeNB encourages everyone to find a significant way to mark this important day such as a moment of silence, lowering your workplace flags to half-mast, or attending a remembrance ceremony.
For more information on Day of Mourning activities, please click here.
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