Provincial workplace
safety video contest challenges young aspiring
filmmakers
WorkSafeNB,
in partnership with the Department of Post-Secondary
Education, Training and Labour, has launched a provincial
video contest called “It's Your Job – Know Your Rights.” The
contest challenges New Brunswick high school students to
develop a creative video for social media that illustrates the
importance of working safely on the job or about their right
to be treated fairly for the work they do. The contest runs
until April 5, 2013, with cash prizes available for both
students and their high schools. Winners will be automatically
entered in the national contest “It's Your Job”, to compete
against high school winners from across the country and be
viewed by Canadians coast-to-coast during voting in May 2013.
Prizes First place: $1,000
for the student, plus $1,000 for their high school.
Second place: $750 for the student, plus $750 for
their high school. Third place: $500 for the
student, plus $500 for their high school.
Click here
to go to the contest site for details on how you can
participate!
Amendments to WC
Act improve benefits for burials and related
expenses
WorkSafeNB administers four acts: the Occupational Health
and Safety Act; the Workers' Compensation Act;
the Firefighters Compensation Act; and, the
Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission
Act. And while WorkSafeNB administers these acts, any
changes to the legislation are enacted by government upon
receiving royal assent.
In the spring of 2012,
WorkSafeNB's board of directors recommended changes to the
Workers' Compensation Act that would improve benefits
for the estate of those who died as a result of a workplace
injury or disease. These changes, under Bill 26, received
royal assent on December 20, 2012 and are now in effect.
The changes mean an increase in the amount for burial
from 20% of the New Brunswick Industrial Aggregate Earnings
(NBIAE)* to 40% of the NBIAE and removing the CPP offset, and
a new lump sum benefit equal to 50% of the NBIAE to offset
other expenses related to a compensable death.
*The
NBIAE is an amount set by WorkSafeNB as of January 1 each
year, based on yearly increases in the Consumer Price Index
for Canada and monthly reports published by Statistics Canada.
Click here
for a more detailed definition of the NBIAE.
Canadian Agricultural
Safety Week 2013
While snow-filled driveways and frost-covered windshields
might suggest otherwise, spring really is just around the
corner! That's why every March the Canadian Agricultural
Safety Association (CASA) puts on a safety week as a way of
teaching those involved in agricultural industries about safe
farming practices. This year's event runs from March 10-16.
For more information, click here.
WorkSafeNB
supports CASA's initiative by hosting Progressive
Agriculture Safety Day® events for elementary
school children in the province's agricultural regions. These
one-day events are held in June and September and cover a wide
variety of topics that cater to rural audiences. Students
alternate between various learning stations that can include
everything from firearm safety to recognizing and avoiding
chemical exposure. A date has been scheduled in Saint-Jacques,
N.B. on Thursday, June 13. A September date is to be
announced.
WorkSafeNB
also has a number of publications available related to
agriculture safety, including:
Remember
– being safe isn't a chore, it's a way of life that protects
everyone who lives or works on the farm!
Queen’s Jubilee Medal
awarded to WorkSafeNB's board of directors' chair
WorkSafeNB is pleased to announce that Sharon Tucker,
chairperson of our board of directors, was awarded the Queen
Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal on December 1, 2012.
The commemorative medal was created to mark the 2012
celebrations of the 60th anniversary of Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne. The medal
honours the Queen for her service to Canada, and also serves
to honour contributions and achievements made by Canadians who
represent the full breadth of our society.
To be
considered for the medal, nominees “must have made significant
contributions to Canada or to a particular province,
territory, region or community within Canada, or for an
outstanding achievement abroad that has brought great credit
to Canada.”
Tucker was recognized for her many years'
service to the town of St. George, as a councillor, deputy
mayor and mayor; for her tireless work in physician
recruitment; and, for her commitment to community, as a warden
of St. Mark's Anglican Church, and a founder of the Community
in Bloom program and Family Fun Days.
Congratulations
Sharon!
CSA invites public to
review standard on LNG vehicle fuelling stations
The
draft Amendment to CSA Z276-11, Annex D – LNG vehicle fuelling
stations is available for public review. Posted on the CSA's
website, it will be open to the public for comment until
March 26, 2013.
The amendment introduces
changes in the body of the standard and adds a new Annex D to
the existing Z276 (2011 edition), to address LNG vehicle
fuelling stations. The CSA public review system can be
accessed through the CSA
website.
To read the draft and post comments,
visitors will need to log in or register if it is their first
visit to the public review website.
Ask
Us
Q:
Are there any regulations in the
Occupational Health and Safety Act regarding safety
harnesses and their age? Are we required to remove them from
service after so many years?
Pierre Untel* ABC Company Limited* Salisbury*,
N.B.
*Names have been changed
for privacy purposes A: There
are no specific requirements in the Act to remove
fall protection equipment from service based on its age.
However, there are a number of clauses that need to be
complied with. More
Thanks to all new and current
subscribers for reading E-News. And please remember, if you
have an idea for a story or a question for Ask Us, contact editor@ws-ts.nb.ca.
About
WorkSafeNB WorkSafeNB E-News is a
monthly publication designed to bridge the gap between
WorkSafeNB's website and CONTACT, our print-edition
newsletter, which is published twice a year.
WorkSafeNB
E-News provides you with timely access to the kind of
health and safety news you need to protect your
workers, your co-workers and
yourself.
|
Visit www.worksafenb.ca
DID YOU KNOW
?
In January,
CSA Standards released a new standard for mental health
in the workplace. CSA standard Z1003, Psychological
health and safety in the workplace - Prevention,
promotion and guidance to staged implementation
specifies guidelines to help employers develop and
sustain psychologically healthy and safe workplaces.
Click here to
read more. To view a free webinar or animated video
related to the standard on the Mental Health Commission
of Canada website, click here.
NEW
PUBLICATIONS
Videos Supervision in Health Care –
Control of Hazards
Supervision in Health Care –
Correction of Unsafe Work
Practices
JHSC
WORKSHOPS
March 5-7,
2013 Moncton
(F), Quispamsis (E)
March 12-14,
2013 Fredericton (E), Saint John
(E)
March
19-21, 2013 Edmundston (F)*, Moncton (E),
Miramichi (E)*, Saint John (E)
OCCUPATIONAL
HEALTH AND SAFETY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM FOR MANAGERS AND
SUPERVISORS
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