Health/Wellness
Graphic WSIB ad campaign aims to reduce workplace injuriesRaising safety awarenessThe commercial is just 30 seconds long. A sous chef in a kitchen shows her engagement ring with the dire warning she won't be getting married as planned. As she slips on a patch of grease she neglected to clean up, the contents of a large pot she is carrying ignite a fire. She suffers horrendous burns. LINDA WHITE -- Special to the Toronto Sun |
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 [ 2007-12-13 ] |
NO ACCIDENTS
The graphic image is part of the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board's (WSIB) new awareness campaign. The theme -- There Really Are No Accidents -- sends the message that workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities are unacceptable, intolerable and completely preventable.
"The first step is awareness," WSIB chair Steve Mahoney says of the campaign. "We must change the culture in our society that workplace accidents just happen and that they're a cost of doing business."
Last year in Ontario, 101 workers lost their lives due to workplace injuries and another 220 died because of occupational-related diseases, the WSIB reports. Already this year, nearly 80 workers have lost their lives due to traumatic injuries -- nearly 10% were aged 15 to 24 years, many working at summer jobs.
"We hoped our graphic public awareness campaign last year would shock people into action to decrease the staggering number of workplace fatalities," Mahoney says. "This isn't happening quickly enough, so this year we're raising the bar even higher with ads that will strike an emotional chord with the people of Ontario."
The board, which administers the no-fault insurance for workers and employers while also trying to raise awareness of workplace safety issues, does report improvements in lost-time injuries. "Our goal was to reduce lost-time injuries by 20% over four years," Mahoney says. Two-and-a-half years later, it is on the road to achieving a reduction of 25%.
Within days of the campaign's Nov. 5 launch, the WSIB began receiving complaints about its graphic message. "I didn't apologize for our ads last year and I certainly won't this year," Mahoney says.
"We won't stop until every person in every workplace -- workers and employers alike -- takes responsibility for workplace safety and spreads the message that zero is the only acceptable number of workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities."
SHOCK VALUE
He believes attitudes can change, pointing to the acceptance of seatbelts and bike helmets. He compares WSIB's campaign to graphic images on cigarette packages. "I do believe shock value is important."
Reaction to the campaign among key stakeholders is mixed, Mahoney reports. Some members of the labour community feel the finger of blame is pointed at the worker, while many employers feel they're being criticized. "I think we're finding the right balance," he says.
"It is a joint responsibility ... I want to reach a point where the first thing that goes through a person's mind when they arrive on the job is the safety factor and the first thing that goes through an employer's mind when they give someone a job is the safety factor."
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