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WorkSafeBC announces preliminary results from gas station enforcement and compliance initiative
Richmond, B.C., July 19, 2006 — WorkSafeBC has found significant levels of non-compliance with safety regulations in gas bars across the province.
As of June 30, 2006, WorkSafeBC safety officers had conducted 366 inspections of gas stations as part of a special three-month enforcement initiative. These random inspections are part of WorkSafeBC’s response to the tragic death of a gas station attendant and a growing concern about young people and all workers working alone late at night.
The pilot phase of this initiative has resulted in virtually every inspection documenting violations and issuing orders.
“Results so far have reinforced the importance of educating employers and workers in this industry,” said Betty Pirs, executive director of Prevention Services for WorkSafeBC. “It is clear that these employers do not have a complete understanding of their legal responsibilities to protect workers who are working alone and/or who may be susceptible to acts of violence in their workplace.”
Most of the worksites inspected by WorkSafeBC have fallen short on site-specific procedures needed to address unique situations present at the work location, and found employers relying solely on generic policy and procedures supplied by the oil company head offices. The inspections also found that very little, if any documentation existed to demonstrate that worker instruction, orientation, and supervision had been satisfactorily performed to meet the required standards and requirements of occupational health and safety regulations.
However, enforcement is only part of this initiative. WorkSafeBC safety officers are also working with employers in this sector to increase their understanding and awareness of their responsibilities under the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation and the Workers Compensation Act; and to develop appropriate site-specific procedures.
“The preliminary results from these inspections support the finding that an effective system or policy for injury prevention while working alone is only as good as the training, implementation, and follow-up done by the employer,” said Pirs.
The first phase of this compliance is nearing completion. In the second phase, WorkSafeBC safety officers, while continuing to conduct inspections, will also conduct follow-up inspections and review compliance plans submitted by non-compliant employers.
While the gas station inspection initiative is an important response to a public concern about worker safety, it’s important to note that gas bars are not typically high risk workplaces. Since 1982 there have been two acts of violence leading to deaths in gas stations (a gunshot fatality during a robbery in 1990 and the young worker fatality in 2005). Both deaths resulted from criminal activity.
However, last year’s death of a young worker has been a wake-up call for all employers to ensure that appropriate procedures, training, and safety measures are in place to protect workers who work alone, whether late at night or in the daytime, or who are at risk of violence in the workplace.
More information on the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation and Working Alone and Violence in the Workplace regulations is available at www.worksafebc.com.
WorkSafeBC is an independent provincial statutory agency governed by a Board of Directors that serves nearly two million workers and about 184,000 employers. WorkSafeBC was born out of a compromise between B.C.’s workers and employers in 1917 where workers gave up the right to sue their employers and fellow workers for injuries on the job in return for a no-fault insurance program fully paid for by employers. The organization is committed to safe and healthy workplaces and to providing return-to-work rehabilitation and legislated compensation benefits.
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For more information please contact: |
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Donna Freeman
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