Canadian Safety Reporter

april 2014 4 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 "There is also an irony in that num- ber, as well in that — as our science gets better and our understanding of occupational diseases gets better — we accept occupational diseases, fatalities and medical conditions, which even last year we did not know about," he said. "So as the number goes down, we accept medical conditions and we grow that number as well." In order to tackle this health and safety beast, Lukaszuk intends to work closely with health and safety officials and the province's WCB, as well as with similar bodies in other provinces and countries, to ensure best practices are applied. The province will also ramp up its education and enforcement efforts. "We have two new tools in our en- forcement tool box. Those are adminis- trative fines, which can be quite hefty, and also we can now ticket in the prov- ince of Alberta to reinforce how impor- tant this is. But by far, education would be the preferred tool," he said. But that plan is a superficial one, ac- cording to McGowan. "In many ways, it's not rocket science. We need more inspectors, we need more tools for inspectors, we need better safe- ty education, and frankly — we need a slower pace, especially when it comes to development in the oil sands," he added, because that quick development often pushes safety to the backburner. As well, making a more aggressive commitment to enforcement would have employers thinking twice about cutting health and safety corners. By announcing months-long inspec- tion blitzes in specific sectors, such as construction and manufacturing, Mc- Gowan said the government is warn- ing employers. That means companies tend to clean up their act for that block of time — and illustrates the need for follow-up surprise inspections, he said. While the inclusion of certain occu- pational diseases and a pledge to focus on health and safety are steps in the right direction, McGowan called it only "the tip of the iceberg." Alberta needs more safety inspectors: AFL Continued from page 1 Elliot lake engineer faces criminal charges | By SaBrina nanji | FUEllED By the deadly collapse of a mall in Elliot Lake, Ont., he inspected last year, an engineer is facing criminal charges. At the end of January, Ontario Pro- vincial Police (OPP) charged Robert Wood, the engineer who inspected the Algo Centre Mall prior to the collapse. Scott Tod, OPP deputy commissioner, said 64-year-old Wood faces two counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm. His trial was set to begin at the end of March. The rooftop parking deck of the mall caved in on June 23, 2012, crumbling into the food court injuring dozens and killing two women — 37-year-old Lucie Aylwin, a lottery kiosk employee and 70-year-old Doloris Perrizolo, a shopper. According to David Smith, manager of communications for the Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO), Wood is no longer a professional engineer. His li- cense was suspended in November of 2011, and revoked in 2012 as a result of an incident unrelated to the mall. After the Algo Centre's parking struc- ture caved in, PEO launched its own in- vestigations into the conduct of certain engineers, including Wood. Those inves- tigations are currently ongoing. Following the collapse, Ontario's la- bour ministry also launched an investi- gation and sent field engineers out for proactive checks and blitzes. A public inquiry, led by Justice Paul Bélanger, was commissioned by the province and has three major compo- nents to its mandate — to examine the events leading to the mall's collapse; evaluate the emergency response; and make recommendations on how to pre- vent another such tragedy and perhaps improve emergency management. During a policy roundtable discus- sion at the Bélanger hearings, which focused on the role of professionals and managers, Greg Miller, of the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists, made two recommendations to improve the safety of workers and the public. That includes creating a minimum standard for maintenance. "It does not necessarily have to be the internal building code — it certainly makes sense from what we hear — but as long as it makes it into regulation, that in part and parcel, the PEO has pro- posed structural practical to which we would also support for being enacted by regulation as well," Miller said. The government also has a strong role to play in upping preventative safety measures. Miller cited legislation that would enforce, at a minimum once every five years, a thorough structural inspection of high-risk buildings. As experts zero in on the root of the collapse, its victims are paving their own path to justice. Fronted by John and Elaine Quinte — whose restaurant, Hungry Jack's, was reduced to rubble — a class action lawsuit has been given the green light. It includes about 300 people and businesses seeking about $30 million in damages and is aimed at 13 defendants, namely the Government of Ontario, the City of Elliot Lake, past and present owners of the mall and Wood himself. Among other things, the lawsuit will provide tangible accountability, said Da- vid O'Connor of Toronto-based firm Roy O'Connor LLP, one of the lawyers repre- senting the plaintiffs in the case. "I hope that not only the class (ac- tion) members, but the public gener- ally gets some explanation and some findings as to what went wrong, and who contributed to what went wrong," O'Connor said. The inquiry led by Justice Bélanger is slated to report back this fall.

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