Manitoba’s Time Loss Injury Rate Reduced by 25 Per Cent

Joint WSH, WCB Prevention Plan to Further Reduce Injuries, 10 New Safety Inspectors to be Hired: Allan

Labour and Immigration Minister Nancy Allan today announced that preliminary figures show that Manitoba has reduced its time loss injury rate by 25 per cent since 2000 and outlined a new comprehensive prevention plan to further reduce injuries in Manitoba workplaces.

“This 25 per cent decline translates into a decrease of over 5,000 fewer time loss injuries annually for Manitoba workers. This represents a remarkable achievement, especially when you consider that this occurred at a time when employment in Manitoba grew by over 44,000,” said Allan. “However, serious injuries and fatalities are still all too common and we must renew our commitment to further reduce injuries and strengthen the culture of safety and health in Manitoba. Work-related injuries and illnesses can and must be prevented.”

The 25 per cent reduction translates into cost savings to Manitobans of over $80 million a year, noted Allan.

The new plan builds on earlier initiatives and outlines key objectives and activities to be undertaken by Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) and the Workers Compensation Board (WCB) to prevent injuries and illnesses in Manitoba workplaces over the next five years.

Key goals in the new prevention plan include reducing the provincial time loss injury rate to 3.5 per 100 full-time-equivalent workers from the rate of 4.2 in 2007 and significantly reducing the number of work-related fatalities and serious injuries. 

The prevention plan focuses on four major strategies:

• Protection: Protecting workers by increasing inspections and increasing the number of effective workplace safety and health programs and committees. Budget 2008 provides $1 million to hire 10 new safety and health officers to strengthen enforcement efforts and increase workers’ safety. This represents the first phase of the government’s commitment to add 20 new safety and health officers. Once all 20 safety and health officers have been hired, it will allow for a 50 per cent increase in inspections.
• Promotion: Creating a culture of safety and health in Manitoba to encourage everyone to believe that workplace injuries and illnesses are preventable. Community partnerships will be strengthened to spread the message that SAFE Work is everyone’s responsibility. 
• Education: Increasing in-person safety and health training, creating online training opportunities, ensuring that training is targeted and stressing the importance of preparing young people for entry into the workforce by increasing the use of safety and health materials in secondary schools.
• Capacity: Supporting the development of safety and health professionals, increasing prevention expertise and enhancing the ability to put prevention information and resources into the hands of employers and workers.  

“Nine out of 10 Manitobans are aware of SAFE Work which is a tremendous accomplishment,” pointed out WCB Chairperson Tom Farrell. “We are well placed to achieve our vision of SAFE Work in every workplace.”

Since 2000, the government has taken significant action to reduce workplace injuries and to provide a safer work environment for Manitoba workers including:

• adding 14 safety and health inspectors and a dedicated Crown prosecutor to pursue serious violations of safety and health legislation;
• more than tripling workplace inspections across the province to a level of approximately 5,800 in 2007;
• initiating the first comprehensive review of workplace safety and health legislation in 30 years - Manitoba now has the most up-to-date workplace safety and health legislation in Canada;
• updating safety and health regulations to address particularly hazardous work environments including confined-space entry work and asbestos, and addressing emerging safety and health issues such as ergonomics and workplace harassment and violence; and    
• updating The Workers Compensation Act to improve benefits for injured workers and to give the WCB a stronger mandate for prevention.

“Manitoba has come a long way in the last eight years,” said Allan. “We have reduced the time loss injury rate by 25 per cent. Now we’re going to build on this momentum by increasing the number of safety and health officers for inspections, and by focusing on education and awareness to further reduce the injury rate and make our communities and workplaces safer for Manitoba workers and their families,” said Allan. 

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