Safety legislation draws mixed reaction.

Safety legislation draws mixed reaction

Reaction from Northern Ontario construction firms is mixed as Bill 208 nears its third reading in the provincial legislature.

"It's going to be a pain in the a.. while people are getting used to it," said Mitchell Speigel, president of Acme Construction in Sudbury. "Of course there's going to be an added cost and a loss of productivity while workers are being trained."

The bill, which contains changes to the Occupational Health and Safety Act, is expected to get its third reading sometime this fall. It is an effort to improve health and safety in the workplace and reduce the $1.45 billion in compensation being paid annually.

Improved safety is expected to result from the creation of safety committees in the workplace. According to the ministry, there are currently 30,000 safety committees in the province's workplaces. By removing exemptions given to the retail, construction and office sectors under the current legislation, the number should jump to 50,000.

Under the bill, businesses with more than 20 employees must form committees. Each committee will have equal membership of labor and management and one member must be certified by the labor ministry.

The lone exception to the rule has been granted to the construction industry.

Construction firms must employ a minimum of 50 people for a three-month period before a committee - comprised of management, labor and trades representatives - is required. None of the members of the committee needs to be certified. The certification requirement comes into effect when the project has a duration of more than six months.

Companies with between six and 19 employees must have a health and safety representative who is chosen by the workers.

The committee members may point out potential safety hazards to the employer, who must respond in writing within 30 days.

The certified member of the committee will have the power to immediately stop work which poses a danger or, following consultation with the other committee members, stop any work thought to be dangerous.

According to Speigel, the bill requires his construction firm, which employs as many as 200 workers, to do something it already does.

"We've had safety committees for years. The bill just makes the requirements more stringent," he said.

Aside from the loss of productivity during training sessions, Speigel fears the stop-work aspect of the bill could be abused and further cut into productivity.

"There will be a great impact on companies if the stop-work is improperly handled."

However, Walter Melinyshyn, director of the Construction Health and Safety Association, said the philosophy behind the legislation precludes unwarranted stoppages.

"It is structured for labor and management to work together to to solve problems in the workplace," he said. "The philosophy treats them as responsible people."

Melinyshyn added that the self-enforcement aspect of the legislation is important because there are only 92 inspectors and 14 field managers and engineers charged with enforcing the bill across the province. He added there is currently a recruitment drive for more workplace inspectors.

BENEFITS

While conceding there are added costs involved in training workers for certification under the bill, one construction official expects the costs to match the savings from reductions in compensation payments.

"We're going to be effected somewhat by the bill, but I think it might benefit us by lowering compensation costs," said Mark Rainone, owner of the Rainone Construction Group in Sault Ste. Marie. "There will be some added costs, but I'm hoping it will be balanced by the savings."

Like Acme, Rainone, which employs between 70 and 90 people during the peak season, has also had safety-trained workers on work sites. The workers received their training during two-day sessions offered by the Construction Safety Association of Ontario (CSA).

Under the current system, employers pick up the tab for workers' salaries while they attend the training sessions. The CSA pays for the trainers and costs associated with holding the sessions. According to an official with the association, the agency will be one of the agencies responsible for training workers under the new system.

Lynn Sylvester, executive vice-president and general manager of the association, said the bill will have a major impact on the association's operations.

Sylvester said the number of requirements contained in the proposed bill and other legislation such as WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Material Information System) will create a need for more trainers as the number of workers requiring certification grows.

"The bill is going to create a tremendous demand for more trained people," he said.

Currently, the association has 60 people on staff who work as safety trainers. However, Sylvester said the association can call on a number of individuals in the community college system and can use labor unions to assist in training sessions.

SUGGESTIONS

Sylvester said the association is in the midst of committee work aimed at identifying areas which need to be addressed when the new training requirements are brought on stream. The official said he expects the majority of the training activity won't occur until sometime next year after the legislation is passed and the logistics of delivering the training is worked out.

"It will take a year or two before we get rolling," he said.

CHRIS KREJLGAARD Staff Writer