Kimber and Tucker Safety Coordinators
NEWSLETTER
Summer, 2014
Date: June 30, 2014
Attention: Current Safety Clients
Again this season, Kimber and Tucker have a few announcements relating to your Safety Programs. Please take a few minutes to review the following, initiated as part of our continued commitment to effectively coordinate your current Safety Program.
New Forms:
With the goal of developing a more consistent way to better serve our clients, within the last 18 months we developed and initiated the use of new Hazard Assessment, Site Inspection, and Monthly Summary Forms. Beginning in July, 2014 we will introduce a Client Monthly Safety Summary to clients coordinated in Nova Scotia. This monthly re-cap will document items including numbers relating to workers hired, orientations completed, safety meetings conducted, formal inspections, unsafe acts/conditions identified, incidents, first aid kit entries, investigations completed, recommendations made, training courses completed. Our goal is to expand this monthly re-cap to clients in New Brunswick and PEI by the end of this year.
Training Courses (Nova Scotia):
As a value added feature to Minimum Billing Clients, specific Training elements will be included within the Minimum Billing umbrella. In addition, on-demand Training will be featured to all clients. Your coordinator will be in touch with you shortly to personally review the complete list of Safety Training courses. Our goal is to expand this service to other provinces in the future, when a formal system is developed and tested.
Rate Increase:
As per our Winter Newsletter, we withheld cost of living rate increases normally instituted on January 1, 2014 until July 1, 2014. The published Statistics Canada cost of living increases per province are 1.2% (Nova Scotia), 0.8% (New Brunswick), and 2.0% (PEI). These increases will be reflected in your July invoices.
New Brunswick WC Act/ OHS Act amendments:
The following is a quick summary of amendments to the WC Act and OHS Act. These clarifications/enhancements will be enforced beginning in June this year:
- Clarify and modernize employer and worker obligations to report injuries.
- Establish clearer limitation periods for claim applications.
- Enhance the existing requirement for Health and Safety policies for certain workplaces.
- Introduce a new requirement for certain workplaces to establish an occupational Health and Safety Program.
- Clarify orientation and training requirements for new employees.
- Clarify and modernize the requirement to report accidents and incidents.
Workshops are currently underway to help explain the amendments to the industry. You can visit www.worksafe.nb.ca to view the amendments in greater detail, and to locate the workshop in your area.
PEI WCB Changes to Act:
Effective January 1, 2014, in addition to the existing employer duties, the new Act also requires employers to:
- Cooperate to help an injured worker return to work.
- Not knowingly provide false or misleading information.
- Report when an employee returns to work.
- Report any change in an employee’s status that could impact his entitlement to benefits.
Effective June 1, 2014, there will be a five-year limitation for filing work-related hearing loss claims. Contact WCB for more details.
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI Internal Responsibility System (IRS):
Clients are reminded that all OH&S authorities place the responsibility for workplace Health and Safety on EVERYONE in the workplace.
Reminders:
- Our website, which started in early 2012, can be located at www.kimbertuckersafetycoordinators.com
- We continue to accept Visa/MasterCard payment. Please contact this office if you wish to add your company to the growing list of firms who are taking advantage of this service.
- Our Coordinators require your site locations to enable them to make more efficient use of their time, resulting in more efficient and cost effective service to the client. It is the responsibility of the client to advise our Coordinator the location of your work sites.
Regards,
Jim and Nevin