Guy Quenneville
Northern News Services
Published Monday, December 3, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - A new association funded by the Workers' Compensation Board wants to provide proper safety training to construction workers all across the NWT and Nunavut.

The Northern Construction Safety Association is just nearing the end of its first year and is finally ready to puts its plans into action.

"We're all set to go, and we've got some training dates set up for January and February," said Mike Ingram, the association's executive director.

The first round of training sessions (ranging in length from one to two days) will cover how to properly carry out safety audits and how to implement safety plans specifically tailored for individual workplaces.

The program is modelled largely after the Alberta COR (certificate of recognition) program, aimed at reducing the costs - both personal and financial - associated with workplace accidents.

It's high time the service came to the North, according to Ingram - and not just because it will save companies the cost of sending employees south for training.

"There was definitely a void there, because in every other jurisdiction in Canada (except PEI, which has yet to institute a province-wide safety program), once they get a construction safety program set up and COR certifications programs running into continuum, their incident rates have dropped dramatically," he said.

Rejean Jacques, a board member for the association and the owner of GC North, a construction contracting company in Iqaluit, said his business will definitely benefit from a safety plan.

"There's a lot of manpower in Iqaluit coming back and forth," he said.

"It's not a steady manpower. And a lot of local Inuit people need quite a bit of training. We definitely need, as an entrepreneurial (company), to have a safety plan."

Bruce Graney, an officer with the WCB's Prevention Services, said that accidents such as falls from height "are reducing somewhat because of the campaigns we've done over the years."

Caitlin Cleveland, a communications officer with the Workers' Compensation Board of the NWT and Nunavut, said funding the program was a no-brainer.

"(The WCB) is more than just an insurance organization," said Cleveland. "It's also a prevention-focused organization. And we're always looking for innovative ways to better serve our stakeholders."

Cleveland added that although the association is now primarily targeted toward the construction industry, that does not preclude the involvement of other industries.

"It's open to anybody that's interested in participating," Cleveland said. "The association would not turn anybody away."

Ingram said the association's mandate calls for it to expand its scope in its third year to other industries, such as mining.