Canadian Occupational Safety (COS) magazine is the premier workplace health and safety publication in Canada. We cover a wide range of topics ranging from office to heavy industry, and from general safety management to specific workplace hazards.
Issue link: https://digital.thesafetymag.com/i/1315990
E D I T O R I A L I remember my last day in our office in March. When we shifted to telework, I figured it would only be for a couple of weeks until COVID-19 had come and gone. I may have been a little off the mark. Going into 2020, I'm not sure many of us thought that, within a few months of the new year, the world would be facing a public health crisis unprecedented in modern times. Much has been said over the last nine months on how the pandemic has changed our lives. It's changed the way we interact with others, from complete strangers to even the people we love. It's changed our consumer habits and how we shop. It's changed how we work — and, for many of us, where we work. It's changed how we view travel, health, urban spaces… The pandemic has had a devastating effect on our economy and, despite promising vaccine news, it's still too early to tell when we will see the light at the end of the tunnel. More than a million people have died worldwide and, in the midst of this second wave, infection numbers and death rates continue to climb. Yet, somehow, there have been some silver linings to the pandemic. My mom works in a hospital, my brother in a school; many of us have friends and family on the frontlines. It's a small consolation maybe, but it's been heartening to see that essential workers are finally getting their due. Frontline workers have been keeping the country running for the last few months and for that I am thoroughly grateful. For the OHS profession, too, this has been somewhat of a watershed moment. Workplace safety is — rightfully — on everyone's minds, and safety professionals are at the forefront of important, and necessary, conversations. With increased awareness of workplace health and safety among employers and workers, this will hopefully raise the profile of the profession in the long term. And what about COS? One bright spot this year for us and, hopefully, our attendees, was Canada's Safest Employers awards. This year, we celebrated the 10th edition of the awards. As you can imagine, the format was slightly different than what we had planned at the start of the year. Nevertheless, the virtual ceremony was a roaring success and we're already looking forward to next year. You can discover all the winners of our record 21 new categories in these pages and glean insights from our stellar individual winners, too. It's (finally) the end of the year. A time for many to reflect on what happened over the last 12 months and look ahead to 2021. Like many of you, I'm sure, I'll be happy to see the back of 2020. I'm going to hold off on making predictions: It's most likely going to be a very long winter, but I'm hopeful that next year will end up being a good one. Maia Foulis, editor, Canadian Occupational Safety Ring out, wild bells Contents of Canadian Occupational Safety are copyright © 2020 HAB Press Limited and may not be reproduced in whole or part without written consent. HAB Press Limited disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. HST/GST # 70318 4911 RT0001 Canada Post – Canadian Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement 41261516 International Standard Serial Number 0008-4611. The publishers accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, colour transparencies or other materials. Manuscripts or other materials must be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Canadian Occupational Safety is published six times yearly by HAB Press Limited, KEY MEDIA and the KEY MEDIA logo are trademarks of Key Media IP Limited, and used under license by HAB Press Limited. CANADIAN OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY is a trademark of HAB Press Limited. 20 Duncan St. 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON. M5H 3G8 www.cos-mag.com Issue dates are March/April, May/June, July/August, September/October, November/December, January/February. Subscription price: Canada: $69 plus tax; US: $69,International: $96 Canadian Occupational Safety makes every effort to ensure accuracy in all items reported, but cannot accept responsibility for the representations or claims made by sources used. It is also not responsible for claims made by its advertisers. EDITORIAL Editor Amanda Silliker (on leave) Acting Editor Maia Foulis Production Editor Patricia Cancilla Writer Jim Wilson Columnists Cathy Chandler Cheryl A. Edwards Dave Fennell Glyn Jones PRODUCTION Designer Jommel Ramos Production Co-ordinator Kim Kandravy Client Success Co-ordinator Kshipra Dhindaw Global Production Manager Alicia Chin (on leave) SALES & ADVERTISING Fred Crossley fred.crossley@keymedia.com 416 644 8740 ext. 236 EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Guy Chenard, CRSP, C.E.T. Safety Consultant Dave Gouthro, CRSP, CHSC, CHSO Occupational Health & Safety Consulting David Johnston, CRSP Director, EHS, Toronto Hydro Eldeen Pozniak, CHSC, CHSMSA, CRSP, Director, Pozniak Safety Associates Laura Rourke, CRSP, Peng, TSRP EHSS manager, Tigercat Industries Dan Strand, CRSP, CIH, ROH Director, Prevention Field Services, WorkSafeBC ISSUE 58.06 www.thesafetymag.com/ca OCCUPATIONALSAFETY CANADIAN Printed in You need to be reading Canada's premiere publication on occupational health and safety Delivering 6 print issues a year In each issue of Canadian Occupational Safety, our readers get a whole new mix of practical, informative and editorially-sound articles to help them in their work as health and safety professionals. It covers a wide range of topics ranging from office to heavy industry, and from general safety management to specific workplace hazards. 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