HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, APRIL 2016

CHANGES TO BC LAW WILL REQUIRE MORE EMPLOYEES TO SUBMIT MANDATORY FINGERPRINTS

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, APRIL 2016

A CANCER CLUSTER IS FOUND

HSA members Katrina Hammer and Anne MacFarlane, and HEU member Patricia Schmidt, all worked in the laboratory at Mission Memorial Hospital. All three contracted breast cancer, and an investigation into the cancer identified there was a cancer cluster in the laboratory – where the incidence of breast cancer was eight times the rate of breast cancer in BC.

THEIR CLAIMS ARE DENIED

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, APRIL 2016

BY DAVID DURNING, OHS OFFICER

The Canadian Mental Health Association's annual Bottom Line Conference brings together workers, employers and researchers to find ways of improving mental health in Canadian workplaces.

This year, HSA sponsored two members to attend the conference held recently in Vancouver.

Occupational health and safety is important to HSA members. Safety stewards and representatives on joint OH&S committees play a vital role in promoting a safe work environment and preventing injuries.

HSA is offering the following OH&S workshop in Victoria for stewards and representatives on joint occupational health and safety committees in Regions 1 & 2.  This workshop is participatory and discussion-oriented, providing an opportunity to examine examples from your own workplace.

HSA lawyers Tonie Beharrell and Randy Noonan and HEU’s Kaity Cooper appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada today to challenge the decision of the BC Supreme Court and BC Court of Appeal to overturn a decision of the BC Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal (WCAT).

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, DECEMBER 2015

BY DAVID DURNING, HSA OHS OFFICER

A recent survey of emergency department staff at Abbotsford Regional Hospital indicated that more than half of those who had recently experienced violence on the job didn't report those events.

Last month over 50 RPNs from around BC came together for the RPN Summit on Workplace Violence at the HSA Head Office.
 
Today, we’re releasing a video featuring HSA RPN members as they share their experiences with violence in the workplace.

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, OCTOBER 2015

BY DAVID DURNING, HSA OHS OFFICER

Recent amendments to the Workers Compensation Act are meant to improve workplace health and safety and to provide stronger tools to WorkSafeBC officers for enforcing the Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation.

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, JUNE 2015

HSA member David Bland was a vocational counsellor who worked at Richmond Mental Health Services. At the end of an otherwise ordinary work day in January of 2005, as David left his workplace, a former client was waiting in the parking lot – and fatally stabbed David. To honour his memory, the union established the David Bland Memorial Award in 2007 to honour the important work that members undertake as advocates for their colleagues in ensuring we all work in a safe environment.