--WCB, Fisheries Safety Association and Province call for cultural change, urge PFD use in response to Transportation Safety Board report---
Halifax, NS – July 12, 2012 – Nova Scotia fishermen are 19 times more likely to be killed at work than working Nova Scotians in general, according to Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia (WCB) statistics.
In light of a recent Transportation Safety Board (TSB) report, it’s a sombre reflection on the desperate need for cultural change in the province’s fishing sector.
“The number of fatalities and injuries in the fishing industry is completely unacceptable,” said Stuart MacLean, Chief Executive Officer of the WCB. “This is a proud, vibrant industry at the very core of our heritage. But it has a dark side. That dark side is the perceived acceptability of a fatal workplace hazard. This must change.”
Together with partner organizations working for change in the fishing industry, the WCB released a statistical overview today in response to the TSB report, which was based on a three-year investigation into fishing safety in Canada. The report calls for focus and concerted action in all regions to reduce the unacceptable death toll.
Since 1999, according to the report, 154 people have died in incidents in the fishing industry nationally. Nova Scotia’s share in that death toll is staggering. Comparing the years 2007-2010, 41 people died across the country in workplace incidents at sea. During that same time period, using the same definition as used in the TSB report, 19 people died fishing in Nova Scotia – meaning this province had just under half of the country’s fishing fatalities.
The Transportation Safety Board also made a number of recommendations that speak directly to the need for cultural change in Nova Scotia’s fishing sector. Among the findings was the lack of acceptance of personal protective equipment – such as floatation devices which are easy to wear while working. Some 25% of fatalities across the country, the report notes, occur when someone falls overboard and can’t get back on the vessel easily. And yet, many fishermen refuse to wear PFDs.
“There are many workable, affordable PFDs out there, but as the TSB report notes, there are underlying cultural barriers that keep people from wearing them,” said Stewart Franck, Executive Director of the Fishing Safety Association of NS. “Repeatedly we hear that the best PFD is one that is worn. Fishers, safety advocates, manufacturers and regulators must work together to identify equipment that is acceptable. This will save lives, better allowing for rapid retrieval of those who fall overboard. Not only is it the law, it clearly makes sense to use protective equipment when working on or near the water.”
Overcoming those cultural barriers requires industry-based support for change. That’s why the WCB is working with the FSANS and the Department of Labour and Advanced Education to raise awareness of the issue, the acceptance of the need for something different, and the long-term behaviour change to make it real.
“No matter what the job or where they work, all Nova Scotians have the right and the responsibility to keep themselves and each other safe,” said Minister Marilyn More, Labour and Advanced Education. “All workplace injuries and deaths are preventable and we must all play our parts to make safety second nature on every fishing vessel in the province.”
During National Drowning Prevention Week (July 21-29), the WCB, FSANS, and Nova Scotia Labour and Advanced Education will roll out an awareness campaign about the need for change in the fishing industry. The campaign will include print and radio ads featuring safety champions from the fishing industry – Leonard LeBlanc, a Cheticamp fisherman, and Marilyn D’Entremont, a widow from Pubnico whose husband, Lewis, tragically died while fishing for herring.
The fishing industry also has one of the highest injury rates overall in Nova Scotia. In 2011, about 330 people were hurt on the job in the sector and of those, 135 were serious injuries that resulted in time lost from work. Those numbers take not only a human toll, but a financial one, affecting WCB rates for the sector.
“If nothing changes, people will continue to die at work in this industry,” said MacLean. “Fishermen have faced dangerous conditions for far too long, and they are an important part of the solution to save lives in their industry.”
Fishing Safety - Statistical Overview
About the WCB
The Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia (WCB) is committed to keeping Nova Scotians safe and secure from workplace injury. The WCB provides workplace injury insurance for more than 18,000 employers, representing about 300,000 workers across the province. The WCB sets the standard for workplace injury insurance by informing and inspiring Nova Scotians in the prevention of workplace injury. If an injury occurs, we support those whose lives it touches by championing a timely return to safe and healthy work.
About the Fisheries Safety Association of Nova Scotia
The Fisheries Safety Association of Nova Scotia (FSANS) is an industry-led initiative – created for industry, by industry – in response to rising WCB rates and the high number of fatalities and serious injuries experienced compared to other sectors. FSANS consists of a volunteer Board of Directors representing all industry sectors: five harvesting, five processing, three aquaculture, two sector council and one full-time employee.
About the Department of Labour and Advanced Education
Labour and Advanced Education, through its Occupational Health and Safety division, uses education and the enforcement of regulations to work with employers, employees, and safety partners to reduce the number of workplace injuries and fatalities. Workplace safety is also a key component to productivity. As a result, safety plays a key role in the department’s overarching goals of economic and labour prosperity.
For more information, please contact:
Julie Trites, Communications Advisor
Workers’ Compensation Board of NS
902.491.8110
902.220.0687
Julie.trites@wcb.gov.ns.ca
Stewart Franck
Executive Director
Fisheries Safety Association of Nova Scotia
902.527.7985
stewart@fisheriessafety.ca
Brian Taylor, Communications Advisor
Labour and Advanced Education
902-424-0281
taylorbk@gov.ns.ca