Canadian Occupational Safety

18 Canadian Occupational Safety | www.cos-mag.com UTILITIES AND ELECTRICAL GOLD SILVER Oakville Hydro Electricity Distribution SILVER Peterborough Utilities Group food-grade, slip-resistant footwear. Many employees work in food services and the safe use of knives is a big concern. Whether they are cutting vegetables or using a slicer, workers are required to wear the appropriate cut-resistant glove. "It's mandatory that employees clearly understand this requirement and we hold people to that. We had incidents in the past and now, we want to make sure we don't," Anderson says. Many workers are responsible for driving other employees to and from job sites. Horizon North puts drivers through an intensive training course, which includes classroom instruction, driving simulation and obstacle course testing, says Warren Murray, senior vice-president of industrial services. All vehicles have a GPS tracking system that notifies a manager if the driver exceeds a speed limit, takes a corner too fast or accelerates or brakes too fast. "We check all drivers' records on a regular basis and if we find anything we're not comfortable with, we bring the driver in, sit down and talk about it," he says. Horizon North also has a stringent vehicle maintenance program, and driv- ers are required to put on high-grade winter tires by a certain date. The journey management program includes the requirement to check in before and after every trip in the field. In addition to basic safety training for all workers, some receive construction safety training and those working in kitchens go through food safety training. Workers also learn behaviour-based observation and all supervisors take a three- day course called Safety Essentials for Supervisors and Managers. One key initiative is proactive intervention reporting. "We want to know: What can we learn from the incidents last year, so we can continuously work towards zero incidents?" Anderson says. "If we talk about near misses, for example, possibly we can learn from it." Managers conduct regular leadership safety audits, which consist of speak- ing with workers and having them explain what they do, how they can get hurt and how they mitigate those hazards, Anderson says. Managers acquire insight into workers' safety understanding and, perhaps, need for more training. Where improvements are needed, managers and workers come up with an agreement detailing the steps the employee will take to work safer. Managers are constantly reinforcing the message to work safely. They start meet- ings, both in-house and with clients, with a safety moment. They regularly visit workers in the field and meet with workers on rotation before they travel out to remote work sites. "We have an expectation that we will keep ourselves safe and everybody in our space safe," Murray says. "It's who we are." HOSPITALITY GOLD SILVER Niagara Casinos O n their first day of work, new employees at Horizon North are told working safely is taken seriously at the Calgary-based company. "We're getting them aligned to what I call the 'Horizon Way.' We're setting expec- tations to work safely," says Bill Anderson, executive vice-president of quality, health, safety and environment. Slips, trips and falls are a major focus at Horizon North, which has 1,400 employees. The company, which constructs large lodge facilities and provides workforce accommodation, often in remote work sites, runs an annual campaign focusing on these incidents, launching in the fall when ice becomes a danger. Year- round, it is mandatory for employees working in hospitality operations to wear E very year, Toronto Hydro does a risk assessment of all workplace hazards. At last count, it identified and ranked 70 hazards — including electrical contact, confined space entry, motor vehicle incidents, working at heights and extreme weather. That's why the electric company shuts down for one day every year and all operations employees are asked to reflect on the need to work safely. On Safety Reflection Day, these workers participate in interactive exercises and listen to a motivational speaker. "Typically, it's someone who's survived a traumatic event," says David John- ston, director, environment, health and safety. "It's to reinforce the message why you want to work safely." Toronto Hydro, which has 1,490 employees, provides about 10 days of train- ing per employee per year, most of which is related to safety. Managers recently started using an advanced learning management system to help them keep track

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