Remembrance Day 2022 - Alberta BC Safety Inc.

Remembrance Day 2022

For 100 years we have been remembering those who gave their lives for our freedom. The men and women who fought so we could have the life that we do. Please take the time at 11 am today to remember those who selflessly gave their lives for ours. 

 

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.”

—John Diefenbaker

I’m Baaaaaaaack!

After a quick 5 month hiatus to hang with the newest member of the ABCS family, I’m back to being the ever so annoying voice of safety in your head. It’s the little faces like this guy pictured that we all have at home, whether it’s our kids, nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, etc, etc. These are the reasons we need to make it home safely every night. They are the future and they learn from us… so let’s teach them the safe way. 

Happy Father’s Day

 

Happy Father’s Day to all the hard working Dads out there. We hope you enjoy your day with your family and when you head back to work tomorrow, remember they are the reason why you always play it safe at work. However today… Enjoy your sleep in, new coffee mug and endless hugs from your littles!

There’s Never an Easy Way

We’ve all cut corners before, skipped a step or rushed through a task. For whatever reason, maybe you’ve done it that way for 15 years, maybe you’re in a hurry or let’s be honest… maybe your just being lazy? Whatever the reason; there is never an “easy way”. It may seem easy at the time but it will catch up to you. Taking a trip down easy street can put everyone at unnecessary risk. There is a reason you are asked to do a task a certain way. For example; you’re asked to tighten a flange bolt and you only hand tighten it and not even in sequence because you are rushing to get to break. Well, you took the easy road but for the employee who’s standing anywhere near that pipe when it’s put under pressure, things will be anything but easy… if they even survive. If it seems easy at the time, there will be a price to pay later. It’s so important to do all our tasks properly; every time. Take pride in your work and your safety.

 

Theft

There is a lot misconception about stealing from the worksite. Some people workplace theft is a victimless crime. That these big construction/ oil and gas companies won’t even notice. Wrong! They do notice, according to CBC, employee theft costs Canadian businesses around 1.4 billion dollars every year. So how is this a safety concern? Well in a roundabout way it is. Missing tools or equipment can slow down or completely halt a job, making workers more likely to increase the speed they work at to play catch-up. This can lead to making critical errors and…. POOF! There is an accident or incident. Not to mention the blame game. Have you ever been on site when something does go missing? Everyone gets hammered by supervisors and finger pointing takes over, making it hard to focus on the task at hand. Workplace theft also makes the perfect breeding ground for an incident. 1.4 billion dollars is a lot of money that could have gone to safety programs, staff BBQs or maybe even raises. Stealing from your job site is not a victimless crime and of course, it’s also illegal so it also puts your job in jeopardy. Stealing from your workplace is the very definition of biting the hand that feeds you. We all make good money in the trades… Just buy your tool and equipment like everyone else.

Asking for Help

You are not paid to be the strongest person in the world….or to have magical powers and do the work of ten employees….or even be the all-knowing construction Genie. Yet a lot of people in the trades have a huge problem with asking for help. I’m not sure if they don’t want to slow down the job or they think it’s a sign of weakness or being bird-brained. Whatever it may be, it can cause serious injuries. What’s more embarrassing; asking for help to lift something or doing it yourself and throwing your back out and missing weeks of work? Or; being unsure of something and asking for help or trying to figure it out and hurting yourself? Asking for help, whether it be for assistance or with a question, can keep us from causing an incident for others or ourselves. Therefore, kind of making you the all powerful, never have an incident employee. Which is up there with all-knowing construction Genie.

Keep Learning

Some people hate change… And that’s fine if we are talking about the mullet you’ve been rockin since the 80’s or your playlist from Woodstock. However, when it comes to change in workplace safety; you need to embrace it. I know when you’ve been doing something the same way for 20 years and then all of a sudden your supervisors are asking you to do it differently, it can be overwhelming; maybe even frustrating and more time consuming….. but I assure you there is a reason for it. That reason is more than likely your safety. Just think if we did everything the same as we did 20 years ago? How dangerous would that be? With every incident, accident and injury, we learn how it could have been avoided. Then we apply it to the next worker; helping them avoid the same outcome. Not to mention technology is constantly changing and evolving, also helping us play it safe. We need to be on our toes and always learning the new safer way of doing things. So try and be the worker that is open to learning new things (our eLearning platform has you covered). It may even make you seem a bit younger and hip… Even with that mullet on your head. 😉

Fire Safety While Camping

What would camping be without a good campfire? That’s where all the action happens, the drinks, the grilling of hamburgers and hotdogs and of course the spooky ghost stories. I would say that anyone who has been camping, that their best memories are sitting around a fire. However, those memories could quickly change from the best to the worst if your campfire gets away from you. Here’s a quick overview of camp fire safety to keep those memories, great ones.

 

First check the fire bans and follow them. They are not suggestions and you can be fined for not complying. Next, make sure you can have a fire at your campsite. Almost all parks in Canada that allow fires will supply the pit or firebox. These are the only places you can make a fire. Please note, you cannot 4×4 into the woods, find a random spot and build a fire. However where fires are allowed, clear the area where your fire will be. If there is no pit, use bare ground. Clear a 3 meter area around the fire from all debris. Always have water, sand and a shovel close by.  Only let a competent adult start the fire. I say “competent” because you don’t want party animal Pete (who’s been drinking for several hours) starting the fire with a can of hairspray and a jerry can of gas. A competent adult should also be in charge of supervising the fire. Always extinguish the fire before leaving your campsite or going to bed. I know it sounds so cozy to sleep in your tent while a fire crackles away, but that fire can get out of hand very easily.

 

According to Alberta wildfires there are approximately 1500 wildfires in Alberta a year and 64% of them are human caused. In B.C. according to the Government of British Columbia the average is 1666 with 57.3% caused by humans. These fires cost millions; sometimes even billions, like the fire in Fort McMurray in 2016, not to mention the cost of human life. So, please enjoy a fire while camping but do so safely.

Happy Victoria Day

Awwwww it’s official… With Victoria Day long weekend, summer has officially kicked off. Even if the weather is horrible this weekend, let the camping season begin!  Please enjoy your long weekend responsibly. Take extra care on the roads; no speeding, no distracted driving and definitely no drinking and driving. Also, take care when it comes to your campfires and fireworks. You don’t want to be held responsible for a wildfire. Other than that, enjoy your soggy tents, port-a-potties, and burnt marshmallows. Happy Victoria Day to everyone!

Respect at the Workplace

We’ve talked about workplace violence and bullying, but what about good old fashioned respect? They all go hand-in-hand. If people were always treated with respect and respected others, would there even be workplace violence or bullying? Probably not.  I’m not going to bust into the typical “young people nowadays” rant because I have seen 50 year old workers be disrespectful along with every other age. It’s not about age, it’s about taking the time to treat others the way you’d like to be treated, no matter the level of frustration. Treating someone with respect doesn’t mean you’re a brown-noser. It actually helps with communication and problem solving, instead of adding more problems to the situation. It also builds trust and if I’m working in a hazardous industry, I’d like to be able to trust my colleagues. When you have good communication and trust with coworkers and supervisors, you have a lot less weighing you down and can focus on the job and doing it safely. The foundation of all that is respect. No one is asking you to hold hands with everyone and sing Kumbaya but always remember, no one is too important or too busy to be respectful to other people.