Dryden plant tops in safety; wins Weyerhauser provincial award.

Employees at Weyerhaeuser's Ontario forestlands operation in Dryden have been recognized by the Ontario Forestry Safe Workplace Association (OFSWA) for their achievements in health and safety.

On June 21, members were presented with the 2004 Provincial Health and Safety Achievement Award for Logging, while senior vice-president of timberland operation in North America, Tom Gideon, incoming CEO of Canadian operations, Craig Neeser and outgoing CEO Sandy McDade looked on as proud observers.

"As of September, the group (will) have gone 12 years without a recordable injury," Dan Dedo Ontario forestlands manager says.

Worldwide, Weyerhaeuser has approximately 400 operations. The Dryden facility is benchmarked in the 97th percentile for safety.

"This group would be in the top four per cent of the top 400 operations. It is an outstanding achievement," Dedo says.

The secret lies in obtaining and keeping a group of conscientious and focused workers who take health and safety issues seriously.

"Part of the role of working for Weyerhaeuser is to approach each job with safety being in the forefront."

Standard protocol such as staff meetings, tail-gate sessions and behaviour observations make up a portion of their health and safety activity. But what has worked best for the facility is making safety part of the everyday environment.

"Safety for us is not a program, it is a way of doing business. (Staff) have accepted that it is possible to work everyday without an injury and it is possible to end your entire career without an injury."

Approximately 40 staff members represent the planting, harvesting and new generation division.

OFSWA's consultant trainee, Gary Dickie, recommended the forest land staff for the award. Last year, they won the internal presidential award having been in operation for 10 years without any recordable injury. In over a decade, there has been no Workplace Safety and Insurance Board of Ontario (WSIB) claims and only a periodic inspection from the Ministry of Labour.

Dedo is not planning on changing any safety protocols for the future. Why re-invent the wheel if it is working fine, he says.

The award was presented to the company that showed continuous health and safety improvements, according to OFSWA program developer-communication John Levesque.

The criteria includes management's commitment to providing health and safety meetings, training programs, records of workplace inspections, documented safe operating procedures, records of investigations and incidents, emergency protocol, new worker orientation and monitoring of safe procedures. It is also based on WSIB statistics and the Ministry of Labour's inspections or incidents reports.

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By KELLY LOUISEIZE

Northern Ontario Business