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Faller certification will boost safety in the forests
Supporting documents
- BCFSC news release
- Interior Central B.C.
- Backgrounder (PDF 39kb)
- Fact sheet (PDF 72kb)
- Health and safety accord of the B.C. forest industry (PDF 49kb)
- Profile: Al Lundgren (PDF 28kb)
- Profile: Mike McKibbin (PDF 30kb)
- Certification Q & A (PDF 34kb)
- Faller certificate (PDF 300kb)
November 4, 2004, Nanaimo, B.C. — Tree fallers, who routinely perform the most dangerous job in B.C.'s forests, will soon have to be certified to rigorous industry standards in order to continue to work. The newly-formed British Columbia Forest Safety Council (BCFSC) and the Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) announced the implementation of the BC Faller Training Standard and Certification Program today in Nanaimo.
The Certification Program will require mandatory testing and a skills demonstration by experienced fallers. Any experienced faller must be certified by July 31, 2005; the cost of certification will rise as that date approaches. And beginning in 2005, new fallers will have to undergo a comprehensive training program in order to become certified. Those fallers who have their certifications will also be required to renew their certifications on a regular basis in order to ensure they can continue to operate safely. There are about 4,000 fallers currently operating in B.C.
"The creation of the BC Safety Council has provided the firm foundation for a renewed focus on safety issues in our industry," said BCFSC member Rob Wood, President of the Truck Loggers Association. "Certification of fallers is a critical first step in our campaign to dramatically reduce and ultimately eliminate fatalities and serious injuries in B.C.'s forest industry."
Between 1998 and 2003 there were 26 falling deaths and more than 1,400 falling-related injuries. The number of serious injuries and fatalities to fallers in B.C. is unacceptable according to the WCB, Steelworkers-IWA, independent fallers and forest companies.
"We at the WCB are proud to have played a major role in developing and implementing the faller certification program," said David Anderson, WCB President and Chief Executive Officer. "We believe this safety initiative will help prevent serious injury and death to fallers, and will also improve the overall health and safety of other forest industry workers."
"I'm heartened to see the forest industry, the Steelworkers-IWA and the Workers' Compensation Board working together to address the very serious safety issues the forest sector faces," said Skills Development and Labour Minister Graham Bruce. "The establishment of the Forest Safety Council and initiatives such as the faller certification program are concrete steps towards ending the tragic deaths that have taken such a toll on workers and their families for too many years."
The Forest Safety Council is a direct result of the Forest Safety Task Force, chaired by WCB Chair Doug Enns, which produced a report on the industry in February 2004. The task force, made up of senior representatives from large forestry employers, contractors, fallers, IWA-Canada and the WCB, found that B.C.'s forest sector requires many changes to reduce high rates of serious injury and death. Along with ensuring that the recommendations of the Forest Safety Task Force are fully implemented, the Forest Safety Council is also responsible for developing and coordinating safety strategies and programs across the industry. It represents all the forest industry organizations and the Steelworkers-IWA.
The Workers' Compensation Board is a provincial statutory agency governed by a Board of Directors that serves about two million workers and more than 173,000 employers. The WCB was borne out of a compromise forged between B.C.'s workers and employers, where workers gave up the right to sue their employers or fellow workers for injuries sustained on the job in return for a no-fault insurance program fully paid for by employers. The WCB is committed to a safe and healthy workplace, to providing return-to-work rehabilitation and legislated compensation benefits to workers injured as a result of their employment.
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Tanner Elton |
Gladys Johnsen |