Review. Refresh. Revitalize - Your Workplaces

Environment Minister Carolyn Bolivar-Getson called on Nova Scotians today to review, refresh and revitalize their workplace health and safety practices.

The three "R" words are the theme of North American Occupational Health and Safety Week, Ms. Bolivar-Getson helped launch today, May 1, at a flag-raising ceremony at Province House.

Now in it's tenth year, North American Occupational Health and Safety Week is a time for governments, workers and employers to renew their commitments to on-the-job safety. The minister called on employers and employees to take the three simple words of the week's theme to heart.

"We need to review existing policies, practices, and procedures; continually refresh our perspectives on workplace health and safety; and revitalize current health and safety programs to achieve better results," she said.

Ms. Bolivar-Getson said government agencies are doing their part. The new Workplace Safety and Insurance System brings together workers, employers and agencies to help keep workers healthy and safe. It provides a sustainable system of protection against loss and supports workers' rehabilitation. The system consists of four partners: the Workers' Compensation Board, the Department of Environment and Labour, the Workers' Advisory Program, and the Workers' Compensation Appeals Tribunal.

Ms. Bolivar-Getson said that a number of tools also have been developed to raise the level of on-the-job safety in the province. They include an award-winning social marketing campaign, financial incentives for employers who reward safety and penalize bad performance, and an effective and fairly applied regulatory regime.

Workers' Compensation Board statistics show that more than 90 Nova Scotians were injured on the job each day in 2005. In total, that's 34,000 injured Nova Scotians. Some 9,000 of those people were unable to return to work the next day.

"We all must collectively step up our workplace vigilance, to identify hazards, and eliminate risks," said Ms. Bolivar-Getson. "Much more needs to be done to shift to an ingrained culture of workplace health and safety. Let us all continue to review, refresh and revitalize our commitment."

For information on workplace health and safety see the Workplace Safety and Insurance System site at www.wsis.ca or the Work Safe for Life site at www.worksafeforlife.ca or call 1-800-952-2687.