Released on February 9, 2007
Consultations on proposed changes to Occupational Health & Safety regulations will begin immediately.
“Healthy and safe workplaces are of vital importance to ensuring Saskatchewan people benefit from our prosperous economy,” Labour Minister David Forbes said. “Saskatchewan has long enjoyed a reputation as a leader in workplace health and safety issues and we want to continue to build on the successes.”
Consultations will focus on some of the changes recommended by the Occupational Health and Safety Council, a bi-partite group with representation from both employers and workers. Anyone interested in providing feedback on these changes, or seeing the complete list of consultation topics, should visit www.labour.gov.sk.ca.
These consultations focus on items that are expected to have the greatest impact on reducing Saskatchewan’s rate of workplace injury, illness and fatalities. Additional consultations will be held at a later date regarding proposals not addressed at this time.
“The Occupational Health & Safety Council’s report has provided me with a very detailed review of the current Act and regulations, along with some suggestions for how we can collectively continue to reduce workplace injuries and illnesses,” Forbes said.
Regulatory changes being considered include focused efforts to reduce worker injuries in the health care sector, as well as changes to:
• fall prevention regulations
• powered mobile equipment regulations
• regulations to reduce explosion risks in the oil and gas industry
• contamination limits
• requirements for respiratory protective devices.
“We are targeting our efforts on changes we believe will have the greatest impact on improving safety for our workers,” Forbes said. “Both business and labour have consistently indicated their support for reducing our injury rates and these consultations will give them a chance to tell us if they believe these amendments will help us to accomplish that.”
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For more information, contact:
Nadine Sisk
Labour
Regina
Phone: 306-787-4156
Email: nsisk@lab.gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-535-1930