February 2, 2012

Ontario 2011 construction fatalities decline, safety improvements made, report shows

TORONTO

The number of workplace fatalities and critical injuries in the Ontario construction sector declined in 2011, compared to the year before, a provincial report indicates.

There were 22 fatalities between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2011, compared to 25 in the same time period in 2010. There were 134 critical injuries in 2011, compared to 139 in the previous year.

There was one fatality in the month of December 2011, when a worker fell two storeys to the ground while working on the roof of a new construction building without being tied off. It occurred in the residential building construction sector.

There also were 10 critical injuries that December. Three of them were the result of workers being struck by equipment or materials.

The remaining seven were related to falls: two workers fell off ladders and five were falls from multi levels.

Three of these 10 critical injuries were in the ICI building sector and the remaining seven were in the residential sector. Of the 10, one was a young worker and one was over the age of 60.

In the last year, homebuilding reduced its total injury rate by 13 per cent; heavy civil construction reduced by 11.3 per cent and the siding and outside finishing trade improved by 10.1 per cent.

In a report to the Provincial Labour Management Health and Safety Committee, Michael Chappell, Provincial Coordinator Construction Health and Safety Ministry of Labour, said these gains must be evaluated against the hours worked in construction, but represent very positive improvements.

Positive improvements were also found in formwork and demolition and mechanical and sheet-metal work.

Chappell said it is industry leadership and involvement that will ultimately change and improve safety in a substantial way in the construction sector.

“The gains of the past two decades have been impressive and inroads will continue to be made in such a way that we may all look back and take pride in the fact that, as individuals, we had some small part to play in the positive changes that have occurred,” he stated in the report.

During February 2012, the construction sector, along with all other programs of the Ministry of Labour, will be involved with a blitz on musculoskeletal disorders and ergonomic risks in material handling.

DCN NEWS SERVICES

Print | Comment