Canadian Occupational Safety

October/November 2015 7 Unionized construction sites report fewer lost-time claims: Study W orkers at unionized construction workplaces in Ontario are more likely than their non- unionized counterparts to fi le job-related injury claims, but less likely to fi le injury claims that result in time off work, according to a study by the Institute for Work and Health (IWH) in Toronto. The study found that unionized construction fi rms reported 23 per cent lower rates of lost-time claims than non-union fi rms. The study examined Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) claims data between 2006 and 2012 from more than 45,000 construction fi rms across Ontario. This is the fi rst peer-reviewed Canadian study to examine the occupational health and safety benefi ts of unions in Ontario's industrial, commercial and institutional construction sector. In particular, workers at unionized fi rms were 17 per cent less likely to experience musculoskeletal injuries (injuries or disorders affecting mobility, especially muscles, tendons and nerves) and 29 per cent less likely to suffer critical injuries (injuries with the potential to place workers' lives in jeopardy) while on the job, found the study, which was funded by the Ontario Construction Secretariat. However, unionized fi rms had 13 per cent higher rates of total injury claims and 35 per cent higher rates of no lost-time claims. "These fi ndings suggest to us that unionized workers may be more likely to report injuries, including injuries that don't require time off work," said IWH senior scientist Ben Amick, co-lead investigator on the study. "At the same time, these reporting practices enable construction unions to better identify and proactively manage workplace hazards that lead to injury." When researchers eliminated the effects a fi rm's size has on its overall rate of workplace injuries — larger fi rms typically have greater resources to devote to OHS programs — unionized fi rms reported 14 per cent fewer injuries requiring time off work and eight per cent fewer musculoskeletal injuries. Unionized fi rms saw 28 per cent higher rates of no lost-time injury claims, when adjusted for size. Data for critical injuries could not be measured when controlling for fi rm size. While unionized workers may be more inclined to make work-related injury claims, these fi ndings suggest that their claims are less likely to be of a serious nature. "The lower rates of lost-time claims might also suggest that unionized workplaces are safer," said IWH associate scientifi c director Sheilah Hogg-Johnson and project co-lead. "It could be they do a better job educating workers, in part through apprenticeship training. They may have more effective health and safety programs and practices. They may give workers more voice to infl uence the health and safety of their work environments, and to report not only injuries, but also near misses." Other factors also need to be ruled out before one can say with confi dence that unionized construction fi rms are safer, Amick said. One potentially confounding factor may be that unionized workers are older and more experienced at working safely. Another may be that unionized workplaces are better at offering employees modifi ed work the day after an injury. To help dig deeper, the IWH team is currently studying the organizational practices and policies of a sample of construction fi rms to examine what is behind the apparent union-safety effect. Better support needed for 911 call centre agents M ore needs to be done to reduce the risks 911 call centre agents face, such as musculoskeletal disorders and psychological problems, according to a study by the Institut de recherche Robert-Sauvé en santé et en sécurité du travail (IRSST) in Montreal. "Support mechanisms are needed to help agents develop and maintain the skills that will enable them to do their jobs effectively while preserving their health," said the report's main author, ergono- mist Georges Toulouse. The study found call complexity was correlated with increased intensity of pain in the neck and shoulders, while lower back pain increased with an escalation in negative emotion. Call diffi culties stem from communication prob- lems — inherent to the work of emergency call agents — that complicate the procedures used to determine whether or not to send out fi rst respond- ers, found the study. The researchers interviewed managers, trainers and agents at 10 emergency call centres. The agents said the main problems they faced were: • diffi culty controlling the call and obtaining infor- mation from the caller • the risk of not detecting an emergency situation or of sending police to the scene unnecessarily • diffi culty keeping up a conversation for a long time with a person threatening to commit suicide • intense concentration, combined with uncertainty, when the agent has to act as an inter- mediary between the caller and the police during a crime • having to control one's emotions and reactions when faced with a dramatic situation or an arro- gant caller. Communicating with diffi cult callers is rarely dis- cussed during initial agent training, found the study. In fact, instructions for managing diffi cult calls are rarely standardized, outside of the necessity to follow and then those in the broader health-care sector. Based on the advice of the leadership table, Ontario will develop a plan to reduce incidents of workplace violence as well as change attitudes and improve workplace safety culture regarding violence, said the government. While legislation came into effect in 2010 in Ontario to fi ght workplace violence against health- care workers, it's not enough, said Leon Genesove, chief physician at Ontario's Ministry of Labour. "It's (now) clear that enforcement alone of the legislation will not solve the problem com- pletely and we need leadership from the people involved in the health-care system," he said. "We need healthy health-care workers and safe health- care workplaces." The effects of an attack can be long-lasting, so it needs to be dealt with appropriately. "The stress and mental injury related to a particu- lar incident can be quite traumatic to individuals; both the physical injury and the resulting trauma afterwards can be quite diffi cult," said Genesove. The leadership table plans to develop recommen- dations and action items for four working groups — leadership and accountability, resources and intervention, communication and knowledge trans- lation, and evaluation and reporting — to address various elements of the problem at hand. courtesy and politeness rules associated with cus- tomer service. IRSST is proposing the formation of a co-opera- tive training network for 911 call centres that would serve as a venue for sharing possible strategies to help agents deal with diffi cult call situations. "Given the wide variety of situations observed, there are no magical solutions; nevertheless, agents need to have access to a response repertoire that equips them better for handling diffi cult cases," said the report. "With this in mind, the contributions of more experienced agents are essential." Each participating call centre would set up a work- ing group tasked with designing training content for a specifi c call situation. The group would discuss the topic, listen to recordings of calls related to the topic and develop the training content. The training would be presented to agents at the centre to put it to the test and get feedback. Then, the training module would be presented to other centres, which can adapt it for their particular circumstances. As they will be subjected to discussion and debate among the call agents of all participating centres — each of which has its own reality that may or may not be similar to the others — the training modules will be continually revised in an ongoing improvement process. As a side benefi t, this approach would lead to better recognition for call centre agents, said Tou- louse, which can have real effects on worker health. Performing work that requires a high level of effort without receiving suffi cient recognition in return increases the risk of depression by 81 per cent in a few years, said the study. IRSST's proposed approach promotes recogni- tion of the entire group of call centre agents who participate in the training as well as presenting opportunities for more experienced agents to get involved in training activities.

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