10 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2017
A SUPPLEMENT TO THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Celebrating 75 GROUNDBREAKING years in 2018
SAFETY LEADERS THE BUSINESS CASE FOR INJURY PREVENTION IN HEAVY CONSTRUCTION
BY JAMIE HALL, COO, SAFE WORK MANITOBA
T he first responsibility of employers is to ensure their employees work safely, and end their day that way so they make it home to their families whole and healthy. That is the core goal of workplace safety and health programs. Good employers know that, and hold that goal as a moral responsibility. But there’s a powerful business case to be made for injury prevention in the workplace, too. SAFE Work Manitoba collaborates with our partners in the safety community to help make our province’s workplaces safer and reduce the number of injuries to workers. Our partnership with the Manitoba Heavy Construction Association (MHCA) on injury prevention has proven enormously successful. For the last two decades, MHCA has been instrumental in making the heavy construction industry safer through its COR™-based WORKSAFELY™ program, and has shown time and time again that employers that invest in safety will see the benefits through safer workplaces, lower injury rates and lower Workers Compensation Board (WCB) premium costs.
of 46 per cent. This means that over the last decade, far fewer workers have been injured at work and are available to put in a productive day’s work. This is not a trend, however, across all industries. One of the key differences and advantages that the heavy construction industry has working in its favour to reduce workplace injury numbers is the MHCA’s work to make the industry safer.
which will make them eligible for the WCB’s new Prevention Rebate Program starting in 2018. As a result, an estimated $1.7 million is expected to be returned through the program to employers in the heavy construction industry who have demonstrated that they have reduced the risk of injury to their workers. For the heavy construction industry, this will mean a substantially larger reduction in WCB premium costs. The new Prevention Rebate Program is designed to provide employers with a financial incentive to invest in reducing the risk of injury to their workers. In the heavy construction industry, COR™ certification provides employers with a way to demonstrate their commitment to safety with a focus on hazard identification and risk control, safety leadership commitment and worker participation. The good news is that the heavy construction industry is not alone in this endeavour. Several other industries are also working in partnership to offer meaningful industry-based safety programs in their industries. Together, these industries are not only reducing the number of injuries to workers, but are also demonstrating that improving safety makes good business sense. The business case for injury prevention has never been stronger. I encourage all employers to reach out to their industry, and if you have an industry-based safety program, seek guidance in how you can make your workplace safer and maximize your investment in prevention. ❱❱❱
FROM 2016 TO 2017, EMPLOYERS IN THE HEAVY CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY PAID $1.7 MILLION LESS IN PREMIUMS, A REDUCTION OF 13 PER CENT. IN 2018, THESE EMPLOYERS ARE PROJECTED TO PAY $1.2 MILLION LESS IN WCB PREMIUMS THAN THEY DID IN 2017, A SAVINGS OF AN ADDITIONAL 11 PER CENT.
Jamie Hall is the COO of SAFE Work Manitoba
An investment in safety protects workers, the key to their business’s success. But, there are other benefits to investing in safety initiatives and to accessing the services of organizations that provide industry-based safety programs, like WORKSAFELY™. The WCB’s injury statistics show that the heavy construction industry has seen its time-loss injury rate consistently decrease from 6.9 injuries per 100 workers to 3.7 over the last decade, a reduction
In dollars and cents, fewer injured workers also means lower WCB premiums. From 2016 to 2017, employers in the heavy construction industry paid $1.7 million less in premiums, a reduction of 13 per cent. In 2018, these employers are projected to pay $1.2 million less in WCB premiums than they did in 2017, a savings of an additional 11 per cent. In addition, many employers in the heavy construction industry are COR™ certified,
Workers apply cement during road construction on Hwy 75 in 2014. Photo by BORIS MINKEVICH/ WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
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