Blog Post

Greetings,

Please review the applicable HSE Updates.

  • ERP Drills:
    • All staff are required to review and sign-off the ERP for their branch
  • Company Safety Meeting Presentation:   deadline: second Friday of each month for the previous month
    • If you have not already done so by the deadline, please review the attached Company Safety Meeting on SiteDocs to indicate you have reviewed it. If the deadline has passed – you missed it but are still expected to review and sign-off the presentation in SiteDocs.
  • H&S Bulletin: Answer due by 8am last Friday of the month (Fri 26 April 2024 this month)
  • Health and Safety Committee: Next Meeting: usually Thurs before last Fri of the month (25 April 2024)
    • If you can’t join the HSC meetings,  you can still participate by providing feedback, questions, or concerns to hsc@raeengineering.ca. Please submit feedback prior to the next meeting so it can be brought forward.
    • The HSC meets the last Thursday of each month at 1pm via Teams.
    • Previous HSC Meeting Minutes can be found in the Teams Channel and SiteDocs.
  • Safety Rewards Program: Where your commitment to RAE’s Safety Culture is rewarded!
    • March PRC winners: Submit more cards! Be specific in how your coworkers are contributing to safety!
      • $500 Best Card Winner: no cards to select.
      • $100 Safety PRC Draw: no cards to draw.
    • If you have any questions or concerns about the Safety Rewards Program, or would like to sign-up to do a presentation, please email hsc@raeengineering.ca.
  • Peer Recognitions: Due by Company Safety Meeting each month

 

Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC)

  • Via email (The Catalyst | Le Vecteur)
    • Is Mental Health Funny?: It may not be the most chuckle-worthy subject – however, in public outreach campaigns, it turns out a few laughs can lighten the mood. For this year’s Mental Health Week – focused on the healing power of compassion – we look at ways of connecting and sharing messages that promote health with humour.
    • Rallying as an Ally: Ahead of the International Trans Day of Visibility – an annual event dedicated to supporting trans people and raising awareness of discrimination — the Stigma Crusher reflects on ways of showing up and showing support.
    • Remix Your Therapy: Hip hop as a therapeutic approach to building bridges with youth.

 

AB OHS

  • Via email (OHS eNews - May 2024)
    • Updated: Change highlights: Noise exposure – Part 16 in the OHS Code
    • Emergency Preparedness Week: May 5-11: Emergencies can happen at any time and in any place, often with little or no warning. If an emergency were to happen in your area as you’re reading this, would you know what to do?
      • Emergency Preparedness Week (EP Week) is a nationwide event that has run for more than 25 years in Canada and takes place annually during the first full week of May. EP Week is an opportunity to build more resilient communities and increase Albertans’ risk awareness by identifying local hazards and sharing tips on how to prepare for an emergency.
      • This year, EP Week takes place from May 5-11. For more information, including EP Week resources you can share in your community and your workplace, visit Alberta’s EP Week website. Also, several emergency preparedness resources are available on the OHS Resource Portal, including an occupational health and safety emergency response planning tool kit, a package of templates that accompany the tool kit, and an eLearning resource about emergency response planning.
    • Free webinar on disability management and occupational health and safety, Tues 28 May 2024, 9am-10:30am
    • Youth workplace safety video contest – final call for submissions: The deadline is fast approaching to submit an entry in the 2024 SafeGen Youth Workplace Safety Video Contest. Hosted by CAREERS, an industry-led public/private not-for-profit foundation, this annual contest gives youth the chance to create short videos relating to workplace safety and compete for cash prizes. The theme for this year’s contest is “A Safe Start to Your Career,” inviting youth to showcase ideas on starting their career on a safe path.
      • The contest is open to Alberta residents between the ages of 15 and 20. Entrants create and submit two-minute videos, either on their own or as part of a team. Three winners will take home $1,500 apiece.
      • The deadline to submit an entry is May 13, 2024. For more details or to enter, visit the contest page on the CAREERS website.
    • Updates made to format of Alberta OHS fatality reports: When a workplace fatality occurs, Alberta OHS conducts an investigation and then publishes an investigation report about the incident. These reports have recently adopted a new format that’s intended to be more streamlined and easier to read, with a focus on lessons learned and prevention-related messages. (To align with this change, these reports will now be referred to as “fatality investigation summaries.”)
      • All fatality investigation summaries that are published going forward (including those issued in response to incidents that occurred in past years) will use the new format.
      • To view current and past fatality investigation summaries, visit alberta.ca/fatality-investigation-summaries. An example of a fatality investigation summary that uses the new format can be viewed here.
    • Upcoming live webinars on employment standards: Upcoming webinars (including live Q&A) are scheduled for the following topics:
      • Overview of Employment Standards in Alberta: Tuesday, May 7 (1:30 p.m.)
      • Employment Standards in Alberta – Vacation Pay and General Holiday Pay: Thursday, May 16 (10:30 a.m.)
      • Temporary Foreign Worker Advisory Office – TFW & Employer Rights and Responsibilities: Wednesday, May 29 (1:30 p.m.)
      • Employment Standards in Alberta – Wages and Overtime: Tuesday, June 11 (1:30 p.m.)
      • Temporary Foreign Worker Advisory Office – TFW & Employer Rights and Responsibilities: Tuesday, June 18 (1:30 p.m.)
      • For more information, or to register for one of the sessions, please visit alberta.ca/employment-standards-webinars.aspx. To book a presentation for your company or organization, please email EOP.Presentations@gov.ab.ca.
    • OHS: Beyond the numbers: The Canadian Mental Health Association defines PTSD as a mental illness that involves the exposure to trauma involving death or the threat of death, serious injury, or sexual violence. PTSD can manifest itself in the workplace in a variety of ways, such as fatigue, loss of motivation, absenteeism, anxiety, and lack of focus.
      • Some may think workplace trauma is only an issue for people in occupations such as first responders, but it’s more widespread than that. For example, according to a 2023 report from Mental Health Research Canada, more than one in five Canadian workers has experienced trauma at work. Of those affected, more than a third reported that the trauma still affected their work. Additionally, from 2018 to 2022, an average of 418 PTSD-related illness claims each year were filed with WCB. And the issue appears to be increasing over time: over that same five-year period, PTSD-related WCB illness claims increased by almost 70 per cent.
      • These numbers highlight the impact PTSD can have on workers’ personal and professional lives. It’s crucial to create a workplace that supports workers who have experienced PTSD and other workplace trauma. To learn more, see Psychosocial hazards in the workplace: Assessment and control on the OHS Resource Portal.