|
In This Issue |
|
|
|
JHSC 3-day
Training
January 13-15, 2009
Bathurst
(E), Moncton (F),
Saint John (E)
January 20-22, 2009
Fredericton
(E),
Woodstock (E)
January 27-29,
2009
Beresford
(F), Grand Falls (F),
Moncton (E)
E indicates workshops given
in English
F
indicates workshops given in French
Click
here
or
call
1 800 222-9775
for more
information.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Did you know |
|
In
New Brunswick, injuries resulting from overexertion and bodily
reaction account for the most workplace injury claims. These
injuries can happen by being unexpectedly pulled by an object or
person or when trying to break a fall, for
example.
|
|
|
|
Interesting Link |
Many of us spend half our waking hours
at work, so it’s no surprise that our work environment can
substantially affect our health and well-being. The Canadian
Centre for Occupational Health and Safety’s (CCOHS) newly
revised pocket guide can help you develop health, safety and
wellness programs to make your workplace healthier. Click
here. | |
|
|
|
| Events |
|
November
is...
CPR
Awareness Month
Diabetes
Awareness Month
Osteoporosis
Month
Creating
Opportunity
A
Workshop on Assisting Individuals with a Disability to
Secure Employment Through Work Customization Strategies and
Partnerships with
Community Organizations
New Brunswick Association for Community
Living
1 866 622-2548
December
9
Fredericton
(English workshop)
December
11
Bathurst
(French workshop)
To have your health and safety event posted in
this newsletter, please e-mail beverly.stears@ws-ts.nb.ca.
| |
| Subscriber Infomation |
|
Received WorkSafeNB
E-News from a friend? To receive
your own copy, click below.
If you no longer wish to receive
WorkSafeNB E-News, simply click "Unsubscribe" at the bottom of
this message.
ABOUT
E-NEWS:
WorkSafeNB E-News is a monthly publication designed to
bridge the gap between WorkSafeNB's website and WorkSafeNB
Contact, our print-edition newsletter, which is published twice a
year.
WorkSafeNB E-News will provide you with timely
access to the kind of health and safety news you need to protect
your workers, your co-workers and yourself.
FEEDBACK
If you have any suggestions or comments,
please don't hesitate to hit 'reply' and tell us what you think!
|
|
| More than
500 attend 2008 Annual H & S
Conference
|
Approximately
550 people attended the 28th Annual WHSCC Health and Safety
Conference, October 5-7 at the Delta Beauséjour in Moncton, where
the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission’s new
name – WorkSafeNB – was launched.
A
conference highlight was a workshop on disability management
presented by Wolfgang Zimmerman, executive director of the
National Institute of Disability Management Research (NIDMAR).
Zimmerman rehabilitated himself following a logging accident that
left him paralyzed at the age of 20, and it was his determination
to reduce industrial accidents that helped found
NIDMAR.
Other
workshops addressed topics such as workplace bullying, machine
safety, electrical safety hazards and standards, elevating work
platforms, noise reduction, MSI prevention, due diligence, return
to work and contractor safety management. A trade show, featuring
30 exhibitors, promoted the latest in health and safety
innovations.
At
an awards breakfast on Tuesday, WorkSafeNB recognized Cott
Beverages Canada and Johnson Enterprises Inc., for their cultural
commitment to improving health and safety practices at their
workplaces. (Click here
to read the news release.)
Following
the awards presentation, Louis Comeau and Jamie LeMesurier,
members of the Independent Review Panel that evaluated New
Brunswick’s workplace health, safety and compensation system,
discussed the report’s recommendations to improve workplace health
and safety.
WorkSafeNB’s
2009 health and safety conference is scheduled for September 27-29
in Saint John.
| WorkSafe NB adopts North
American Industry Classification System
(NAICS)
|
WorkSafeNB
has switched from the Standard Industrial Classification
(SIC) System to the North American Industry Classification
System (NAICS).
“The SIC System is
becoming obsolete,” said Claude Savoie, manager, Assessment
Services. “It was developed in the 1930s and was last
updated in 1980, with no plans for further revisions. NAICS
has become the industry standard since its introduction in
1997,” he said.
WorkSafeNB is funded
solely through employer assessments. Employers are assigned
an industry classification, and pay assessments based on
their industry class. This rate is then adjusted based on
the company’s experience (accident frequency and severity).
NAICS will improve the accuracy of classification, ensuring
that assessment rates are more fair, and minimize risk to
WorkSafeNB.
Click
here
to
continue |
James Sparkes & Sons Sawmill
Ltd.,
pleaded guilty on
October 20 to charges under section 242(1) of the General
Regulation 91-191 of the OHS Act for failing to
provide adequate safeguards to prevent contact with moving
drive or idler belts, rollers, gears, driveshafts, keyways,
pulleys, sprockets, chains, ropes, spindles, drums,
counterweights, flywheels, couplings, pinchpoints, cutting
edges or other moving parts on a machine that may be
hazardous to the employee. The charges were laid after an
accident that resulted in a worker losing a hand. Sparkes
& Sons were fined $5,000, plus a victim surcharge of
$750.
Northwest
Roofers Ltd.,
pleaded guilty on October 2 to a charge under the OHS Act
for
failing to ensure that employees used proper individual
fall-arresting systems. They were fined $4,000.
The charge
was the result of a Stop Work Order issued on August 20, the
company’s fifth within 12
months. |
Q: Is there
a safety restriction on the amount of kilograms a worker can
lift, or is this at the employee's
discretion?
John
Smith*
Saint
John, NB
*Name has been changed for
privacy purposes.
A: There
is no legislation restricting the amount a worker can lift.
However, employers can refer to a number of standards that
have been developed to help determine safe lifting
limits. One
such standard is the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) standard on manual handling (ISO
11228-Ergonomics manual handling). This standard serves as a
guideline only.
ISO
11228-1:2003 suggests the following limits, under ideal
conditions:
Also,
please consider the following tips when
lifting:
- Use
mechanical assistance
- Reduce
the loads and distances
- Rotate
lifting tasks among workers
- Keep
load close to you
- Avoid
twisting
- Employ
two-person lift
- Store
items where you won’t have to reach or bend to lift
them
You
can also refer to the book, “A Guide to Manual Materials
Handling”, A. Mital, A.S. Nicholson and M. M. Ayoub,
1997.
For
more information, contact a WorkSafeNB ergonomics consultant
in your regional office, or by calling
1
800 222-9775. To view the interpretation on manual handling
of General Regulation 91-191 (52) of the OHS Act,
c lick here.
If
you have a question for Ask us! please forward to beverly.stears@ws-ts.nb.ca.
|
|
|
Date of
Accident: |
October
17,
2008 |
|
Injury
Type: |
Broken
finger |
|
Hospitalized:
|
No |
|
Industry:
|
Manufacturing
/ Press
operator |
|
Location: |
Southeast |
|
Notes: :
|
Worker
tripped on a floor mat while accessing a control
panel. |
|
| |