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Occupational Health and Safety

August 8, 2008

Roadside worker dies at Mississauga job site

A Brampton man working with a road resurfacing crew on Dixie Road suffered fatal injuries at a Mississauga project site, Peel police report.

August 8, 2008

Work moves along quickly at Vanbots’ Sunnybook Hospital project

Construction is moving along on the M-Wing Shell/P&G Fit-Up at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.

August 7, 2008

Bilfinger Berger Canada sues Metro Vancouver over Capilono-Seymour tunnel project

The German company hired to construct twin tunnels for a water filtration project in North Vancouver is launching a lawsuit against Metro Vancouver and placing a lien against the project.

August 7, 2008

VIA plans to invest $25 million to modernize Ottawa-Montreal railway infrastructure

VIA Rail Canada has announced it plans to invest more than $25 million on a multi-phase, multi-year program to modernize key parts of its rail infrastructure between Ottawa and Montréal.

August 6, 2008

Ontario labour ministry inspectors conduct health and safety blitz at work sites

Ontario inspectors are now blitzing work sites and locations across the province in order to make an immediate impact on improving health and safety, says Ontario’s labour minister.

August 6, 2008

Accidents prompt meeting of British Columbia’s construction-crane industry

Representatives of British Columbia’s construction-crane industry will be meeting with WorksafeBC in September to discuss safety procedures.

August 5, 2008

McMaster study looks at link between diesel fumes and diabetes

International Union of Operating Engineers Local 793 supports a McMaster University study looking at possible connections between diesel fume exposure and diabetes among its members.

August 1, 2008

TransAlta plans new dyke wall for lagoon at Keephills power plant

A dyke wall holding back a pond full of ash slurry from TransAlta Corp.’s coal-fired Keephills power plant is in danger of breaching, so tompany will build a second dyke wall to redirect slurry into another lagoon on site.

August 1, 2008

Monte Creek-to-Pritchard section of TransCanada highway earns an upgrade

The governments of Canada and British Columbia have announced $42.8 million in funding for a highway project near Kamloops under the Building Canada infrastructure plan.

July 31, 2008

200-ton tunnel boring machine completes Manhattan rail tubes

A huge, granite-eating machine that spent the past eight months chewing a mile (1.6 kilometre)-long tunnel beneath a busy Manhattan office district is getting a rest, of sorts, after completing its journey to the city’s Grand Central Terminal train station.

July 30, 2008

Alberta beefs up support for temporary foreign workers

The government of Alberta has quietly launched a new initiative to provide immigration support services to temporary foreign workers (TFWs) in the province.

July 30, 2008

Manitoba boy, 15, dies after being buried under hot asphalt

A 15-year-old working on a construction site just north of Winnipeg has died after being buried in hot asphalt.

July 29, 2008

After 25 years in the trade, electrical inspector says she “wouldn’t change a thing”

Cheryl Carbis, an journeyman electrician and electrical inspector with Electrical Safety Authority, says she wouldn’t change a thing about her choice of trade.

July 28, 2008

Lack of training blamed in B.C. crane death

Scathing reports into the death of a 22-year-old crane operator blame a lack of training, among other factors, for contributing to the young man’s death, but recommend a fine rather than criminal charges.

July 28, 2008

Crane certification process underway in British Columbia

The intended deadline may have passed, but the process for certifying crane operators in B.C. is still underway.

July 28, 2008

Four workers die in mobile-crane collapse at Houston oil refinery

Hitting the ground with enough force to bounce a nearby worker off the ground, one of the largest mobile cranes in the United States collapsed at a Houston oil refinery July 19, killing four workers and injuring seven others.

July 25, 2008

Canadian construction industry looks for more details on national labour mobility directive

A decision by Canadian premiers to improve nationwide labour mobility is being met with cautious optimism across the Canadian construction landscape.

July 25, 2008

Injured worker supports Robertson’s views on WSIB program

Re: Point-Counterpoint on the WSIB experience-rating system, DCN July 19.
As an injured worker and activist here in Ontario, I can’t say I’ve heard anything that makes more sense coming from the employer side of the table, writes Peter Clare of Lambton Shores, Ontario.

July 24, 2008

Texas Mutual Insurance Company pays dividend to Texas Construction Association members

Texas Mutual Insurance Company has announced a US$2.3 million dividend to the Texas Construction Association (TCA) workers’ compensation group discount program. The dividend was based on the group’s premium volume and claim loss history, reports Market Watch.

July 24, 2008

Work moves along smoothly at Vanbots’ Southlake Regional Cancer Centre project

Concrete work continues at the Southlake Regional Cancer Centre in Newmarket, Ontario.

July 23, 2008

Report says asbestos in some Calgary roads poses risk to public health

An Alberta researcher who studies asbestos says that Calgary roadways containing the substance pose a risk to the public.

July 23, 2008

Aecon Construction takes on Highway 10 widening through Caledon Village

The Ontario government has awarded a $7.9-million construction contract to widen Highway 10 through Caledon Village to Aecon Construction and Materials Limited of Toronto.

July 22, 2008

Federal government provides $9 million in funding for Chin Chute wind-power project

The Chin Chute wind-power roject in Alberta will receive up to $9.2 million in federal funding over 10 year under the ecoENERGY for Renewable Power initiative. Gary Lunn, Canada’s natural resources minister, made the announcement at the recent Rural Matters National Symposium in Edmonton.

July 22, 2008

Gold Seal beefs up requirements for construction management certification

Recognizing that both the scope and complexity of construction management have increased dramatically over the past decade, the Gold Seal committee is beefing up requirements for certification.

July 21, 2008

Quebec teen dies in collapse of garage under construction

A 15-year-old Quebec boy was killed and three others injured when a garage under construction collapsed Wednesday morning in a small town in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region.

July 21, 2008

Lack of training blamed for death of Canada Line mobile-crane operator

WorkSafe BC says a mobile-crane operator who died while working on the Canada Line rapid-transit project wasn’t sufficiently trained to operate the equipment.

July 18, 2008

Bruce Power touts benefits of Peace River nuclear plant project

The Bruce Power partnership predicts a nuclear plant in the Peace River region of Alberta would contribute $12 billion to the province’s economy during the construction period and would generate 2,700 long-term jobs.

July 18, 2008

Planning will help Ontario construction industry cope with looming labour shortage

Steady growth in Ontario’s construction industry will require 74,000 new hires over the next eight years, says the Construction Sector Council’s recent Ontario labour market forecast.

July 18, 2008

Ontario General Contractors Association offers Rescue 7 defibrillator service

The Ontario General Contractors Association has partnered with Rescue 7 to improve safety on all its member work sites.

July 18, 2008

EllisDon’s South Health Campus project sets record as largest contract in company history

On July 17, 2008, EllisDon announced that the company recently signed a $1.076 billion dollar contract with Calgary Health Region to construct Phase 1 of the new South Health Campus in Calgary.

July 17, 2008

Barca Construction worker dies at Manitoba job site

Construction work on a site in south St. Vital, Manitoba was stopped last week after the death of a 20-year-old man following a construction accident, reports the Winnipeg Free Press.

July 15, 2008

George Brown College plans new health sciences campus on Toronto waterfront

The province of Ontario has promised George Brown College $61.5 million to build a new health sciences campus on Toronto’s waterfront.

July 15, 2008

Nova Scotia doubles fines for drivers who speed in work zones

Nova Scotia is doubling fines for motorists convicted of speeding in a work zone.

July 15, 2008

CN train collides with stolen paving machine

Luck and timing prevented a CN train derailment at a Sherwood Park overpass from becoming deadly, say police.

July 14, 2008

University of Saskatchewan research team develops ventilation warning system

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are working on designing a ventilation system that could protect schools, hospitals, and other public buildings from chemical warfare and bioterrorist attacks.

July 14, 2008

Experience rating system fails to account for ‘rating prevention practises’

Gary Robertson is President of Wellington at Work, a Hamilton company specializing in injury prevention, claims and disability management in the construction sector. He is past president of the Council of Ontario Construction Associations and has almost 20 years of human resources experience working for construction contractors.

July 14, 2008

Experience rating showcases ‘policy-design partnership’

Les Liversidge, LL.B., is a barrister and solicitor from Markham. She runs a practice that specializes in representing clients in all aspects of workplace safety and insurance in Ontario.

July 14, 2008

Speed limiters on trucks offer cost-savings and environmental benefits, federal report finds

There are positive environmental gains from capping the speed of large commercial trucks at 105 kilometres per hour (km/h) through a speed limiter, says a federal report.

July 11, 2008

Forklift fatality prompts calls for improvements to Alberta’s safety code

The death of a teenager working at a building material supply store near Edmonton last month is raising questions about the need to improve Alberta’s safety code.

July 11, 2008

Boom times mean no rest for portable restroom providers

Canada’s hot construction market is having an effect on an essential construction industry service — portable restroom operators.

July 10, 2008

Utility Locate Rodeo puts locators’ field skills to the test

“Locate from Hell” is the ultimate challenge for any of the 35 locators taking part in first-ever Utility Locate Rodeo, organized by the Ontario Regional Common Ground Alliance (ORCGA).

July 10, 2008

George Brown College to build campus on Toronto waterfront

George Brown College will build a new state-of-the art campus on the city’s lakefront, according to a statement made by Waterfront Toronto on July 8, 2008.

July 10, 2008

Board aims to educate Alberta’s temporary foreign workers

The Alberta Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) is in the early stages of launching a campaign to educate temporary foreign workers about their rights, wages and benefits.

July 9, 2008

Scaffold deaths prompt Australian safety blitz

Master Builders Queensland (MBQ) has labelled a recent fatal scaffolding collapse a “catastrophic failure” and has called on all its members to undertake urgent safety checks.

July 9, 2008

Canadians agree to build ‘Great Wall of Kandahar’ around university

The Canadian government struck a deal last week with officials at Kandahar University to build a three-kilometre perimeter of stone, brick and iron around the school campus.