Local Safety Rep 
Local 116 takes safety very seriously. We believe that everyone should have a safe place to work in so that they can go home to their families and loved ones in one piece. Barry Jones has been tasked with the safety portfolio for our Local. One of Barry's goals is to see that every department has a properly functioning joint safety committee that meets monthly. If you have any safety concerns in your workplace that aren't being addressed, don't hesitate to contact Barry by email at safety@cupe116.com or
phone 604-813-3004.
OH&S History
Occupational Health and Safety concerns were a very significant reason why workers decided to form Unions back when the Union movement was in it's infancy. The workers wanted a fair way to air their concerns about their places of work without the fear of intimidation or retaliation by the employer. And even today, that is one of the top reasons people choose to organize their places of work or apply for jobs in union shops.
Day of Mourning
Every April 28th, Unions take time to grieve the dead, but fight for the living. Our local has a memorial site on campus between the Rose Garden and the Chan Center. In 2008 and 2011 we were honored to have the President of CUPE BC, Barry O'Neil come out to our memorial service and say a few words along with our Local President Colleen Garbe and the President of CUPE 2950, Natalie Lisik.
In 2008 Brother O'Neil had some rather alarming stats about our own university. "This campus alone saw 300 work-related injuries last year, and that’s unacceptable. WorkSafe BC visited this employer every month to deal with inspections and orders for all kinds of hazards on campus." To put that 300 into perspective, imagine just about every 116 Technician on campus getting injured in one year.
Know Your Rights
You can help make a difference in your worksite by knowing and using some basic rights you have in the collective agreement. The most basic of those rights is the Right to Refuse Unsafe Work
Article 23 in our Collective Agreement deals with Safety.
Article 23.01(a) says:
"An employee must not carry out or cause to be carried out any work process or operate or cause to be operated any tool, appliance or equipment if that employee has reasonable cause to believe that to do so would create an undue hazard to the health and safety of any person."
So you can if you believe what you are being asked to do is unsafe, refuse to carry out that work. After you determine that the task is unsafe, you then follow the procedures in article 23.01(b):
"An employee who refuses to carry out a work process or operate a tool, appliance or equipment pursuant to subsection (a) must immediately report the circumstances of the unsafe condition to his/her supervisor outside of the bargaining unit. Temporary assignment to alternate work at no loss in pay to the employee until the matter is resolved is deemed not to constitute disciplinary action."
Safety Committees
Get involved with the joint OH&S committee in your department. The purpose of joint OH&S committees is to examine safety issues in the workplace and then pass along corrective recommendations to the head of that department. The committee must not have more employer reps than employee reps. The reason for this is to ensure that the employer can't overload the committee ensuring that real issues aren't dealt with. The Workers Compensation Act of BC lays out the structure of joint OH&S Committees in Division 4 of the Act. Section 127 of the Act says:
"A joint committee for a workplace must be established in accordance with the following: (a) it must have at least 4 members or, if a greater number of members is required by regulation, that greater number; (b) it must consist of worker representatives and employer representatives; (c) at least half the members must be worker representatives; (d) it must have 2 co-chairs, one selected by the worker representatives and the other selected by the employer representatives.".
The Act also speaks to the fact that employee reps can't be employees that perform managerial functions and that the reps must be elected from within that department.
As well, make a point of reading the minutes from your committee. There must be 3 months worth of minutes posted on the department safety bulletin board. It is a good way of keeping up on concerns in your workplace.
Safety Links
Worksafe BC - Formerly WCB. This is a government body for the workers and employers of this province. They consult with and educate employers and workers and monitor compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation. In the event of work-related injuries or diseases, WorkSafeBC works with the affected parties to provide return-to-work rehabilitation, compensation, health care benefits, and a range of other services.
BC Fed OH&S - The Federation’s Occupational Health and Safety Committee spearheads labour’s work by bringing together representatives of the province’s major unions to push for safer workplaces and better compensation for injured workers.
CUPE National Health and Safety - Lots of good OH&S articles, fact sheets and other resources.
Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) - The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) is a Canadian federal government agency based in Hamilton, Ontario, which serves to support the vision of eliminating all Canadian work-related illnesses and injuries.