Canadian Occupational Safety

safety specialists. This creates a differ- ent attitude throughout the company: health and safety is part of every activity. For example, every meeting involv- ing more than three people starts with a health and safety share, a fi ve-min- ute discussion in which everyone is expected to participate regularly. "We want health and safety to be part of everyday life for everyone," he says. The company's health and safety policy undergoes a comprehensive review annually to ensure it remains applicable and is understood by every- one, he adds. Risk management is a top priority, Cartier says, in part because Hatch employees often work in extreme conditions. The aim is to reduce risks before workers arrive at a work site. "We try to avoid the problem by designing differently, by planning dif- ferently. So when you're at that remote site, you know what the remaining risks are and you know how to attack those remaining risks," he says. Welshons says Hatch's incident rates get better each year. Through constant performance tracking and reviewing trends, the company is continuously addressing whatever safety issues those trends reveal. "Our goal is no harm," he says. "That's the carrot that's dangling in front of us, to keep striving towards. It's always about improving. You can never stop." K eeping more than 30,000 students and 5,000 faculty and staff in a safety mindset is only the tip of the occupational health and safety iceberg for the University of Calgary. The mix includes indoor and outdoor work locations with more than 75 build- ings housing classrooms, workshops, laboratories and the Olympic Oval speedskating and sports facility. Drill- ing down farther unearths the unique challenges for co-ordinating safety practices for thousands of different projects from animal research, drone development, controlled goods and radioisotopes to biohazards and nanoparticles. "To reach this broad community effectively with health and safety messages, we use a variety of com- munications tactics that include social media such as Twitter and Facebook," says Rae Ann Aldridge, associate vice-president, risk. Online media also supplements face-to-face training for both general and work-specifi c requirements such as hazard assessments. To track the training, the university is building the requirements into an enterprise management system. It has also imple- mented a web-based system for the 850 laboratories and 75 workshops. In addition to housing chemical inven- tories, the system links to material safety data sheets, emergency con- tact information, an online incident reporting system, inspection checklists and tools. Occupational health and safety partner Dorrie Wiwcharuk adds that creative new approaches help cap- ture attention and engage audiences when communicating campus safety messages. "For example, Rex, the university's bright red dinosaur mascot, encour- aged students, faculty and staff to download the new emergency app and explained how it works." The app contains tips for staying safe on campus and sends push noti- fi cations about critical incidents. Another initiative launched this year to great accolades was Safety and Wellness Week, which spanned the entire risk portfolio and celebrated "Safety Shining Stars" who had made signifi cant con- tributions. High-profile guest speakers included a Virginia Tech shooting sur- vivor and a former Crown prosecutor who explained how an accident goes through the criminal prosecution process. In 2014, the university was the fi rst post-secondary institution in Alberta to be awarded a Certifi cate of Recognition by the Ministry of Jobs, Skills, Training and Labour. This was bestowed for implementing an occu- pational health and safety system that met the province's standards and excelling in an external audit. "The award culminated a 10-year journey of innovation and culture change, but the journey is not over," says Aldridge. "We will continue to effect improvements to all aspects of the occupational health and safety system from our annual audit feed- back and stay on top of evolving regulatory requirements." Employers COS' national awards program, now in its 5th year, recognizes employers with exceptional health and safety, wellness and psychological safety practices. This year, 2 new awards were added: Young Worker Safety and Canada's Best Health + Safety Culture, the top prize available. Congratulations to all the winners! October/November 2015 15 G O L D PUBLIC SECTOR AND NON-PROFIT radioisotopes to biohazards and nanoparticles. community effectively with health and safety messages, we use a variety of com- munications tactics that S I L VER S I L VER Defence Construction Canada Sudbury & District Health Unit © MSA 2015 • ID 5743 Unpredictable work environments are often part of the job. That's why we're thrilled to applaud those employers who have taken safety seriously to protect their greatest asset: their people. It's also critically important to have the right safety equipment at the moment it matters most. Learn more about MSA's complete line of safety solutions by using the QR code to request a General Safety Evaluation or visit MSAsafety.com, keyword: safety eval. MSA Congratulates Canada's Safest Employers

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