Get Your Cell Phone & Electronic Device policy here!

The Highway Traffic Act has been amended and Regulation 366/09 has been passed to clarify exemptions to the ban on cell phone and electronic device use in Ontario.

This new law took effect October 26^th however the police have said they will give motorists a period of grace until Feb. 1^st 2010 to focus on driver education.

Employers should make use of this time period to focus on the education of their workers by getting a policy in place for their employees. Don’t leave this task up to the police or the government.

They won’t do it!

The potential for vicarious liability by employers for any tragic circumstances arising out of a situation where their employee is driving while distracted by the use of any of the prohibited hand-held devices should be enough to cause every employer to act quickly to ban the use of such devices.

Such a policy cannot be overly simple as the KISS (keep it short and sweet) method would suggest. Consideration must not only be given to what is legally acceptable but also to what behavior is acceptable from the viewpoint of the corporate culture of the organization.

We have developed a basic policy for employers that can be adjusted to suit a variety of circumstances including enforcement and consequences for non-compliance.

We can be of assistance, simply contact us, but don’t wait too long and be sorry.

“Do you have your hands-free device yet?”

According to reliable news release sources, October 26^th is the date for the introduction of the ban on the use of hand-held devices while driving a vehicle in Ontario.

This would ban the use of BlackBerrys or any other electronic device to talk, email or text while operating the vehicle.

We’ve heard that police will give us a three-month period to become educated in this requirement but that by next February we could expect to be ticketed. Fines could range from $60-$500 but with no demerit points attached to the penalty.

Hands-free devices are exempt so far, provided they allow voice-activated dialing.

Be careful though as authorities can still charge any driver with careless driving, if they have sufficient evidence. Careless driving really means ‘driving a vehicle on a highway without due care and attention’ and carries a maximum fine of $1,000 and can involve a jail term as well as a license suspension. Serious stuff eh!

If you have started watching the new TV series “Trauma” you were recently shown just what can happen when someone gets so involved with texting while driving at higher speeds on a freeway. The driver caused a very serious crash involving a number of vehicles one of which was a tanker loaded with a flammable liquid which eventually exploded causing even more injuries to innocent parties. It was a very realistic sequence of events with devastating consequences. All of the statistical evidence acquired by the authorities, legal, insurance, medical and others would certainly support the fact that distracted drivers cause accidents.

This new law deals with only one of the means of distraction that we are faced with on a daily basis while driving a vehicle. The real question is “do we have to have everything legislated?” Drivers must be responsible and always held accountable for their actions.

Remember the old 60’s hit parade song “keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel!”

WSIB Workwell 2009!!!

Well if you haven’t received your letter from the Board advising that you have been selected for a workwell audit, you may have been spared this time around. The Board has recently selected a list of businesses, covering all sectors across Ontario, for their Workwell Core Health and Safety Audit and letters were sent out approximately March 31, 2009.

What does this process involve, if you have met their selection criteria?

An auditor has been assigned to your file and will contact you to set a date for the first phase of this evaluation process. On that date the auditor may conduct the initial audit at your workplace and subsequently a second audit after 6 months, should you fail the first. Or, they may consider starting you on a Risk Management Plan (RMP) should they discover that the Board’s statistics do not fairly reflect your commitment to improving health and safety at your workplace. Through your commitment to this RMP the auditor will continue to monitor your progress. You must complete selected elements of your health and safety program over an agreed time period. Follow-up reports are required to be completed and submitted to the auditor on a timely basis. The auditor will make at least one follow-up visit and if you have failed to meet your commitments, you will be subject to the full Workwell Audit, immediately. To read more about both the Workwell Audit and the RPM process follow the link on our ‘Home’ page to WSIB’s ‘Prevention’ page.

How can we help?

We have successfully developed an Occupational Health and Safety Management System to suit the needs of the WSIB Workwell Audit. This system of procedures along with our training will not only provide you with a passing grade on the audit but will also ensure you meet your ‘Due Diligence’ obligations as an employer in Ontario, thereby meeting or exceeding the needs of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

If you have been selected for a Workwell Audit, we offer you a four (4) hour audit preparation consultation and it is absolutely FREE with NO OBLIGATION whatsoever!

Why not take advantage of this offer, see our ‘Workwell Audit Preparation’ page under ‘Services’.

New Crane Standard B167-08!!!

Well it has been a number of years, 2002, since Canadian Standards Association (CSA) decided a revision was necessary for the second edition of the crane standard, entitled “Safety Standard for Maintenance and Inspection of Overhead Cranes, Gantry Cranes, Monorails, Hoists and Trolleys B167-96”.

This revision, B167-08, now includes crane design and classification as well as crane operation including operator qualifications and training requirements which are all components not covered by previous editions B167-96 or B167-64.

As well this new standard incorporates selected material from ISO and ASME standards. In particular the crane operation requirements of this new standard directly reference the operator training in ISO 9926-1.

Although it has been a long time coming, the really good news is that the standard is now (February 2009) available to purchase online from the CSA website (see our link).

The ISO 9926-1 can also be downloaded for a cost of US$43.00 at www.global.ihs.com.

In January we announced the introduction of our new Industrial Hoisting, Rigging and Crane Operator Training program which we are pleased to say was designed to meet the requirements of the new CSA B167-08 and the ISO9926-1.

The revised standard requires employers to maintain a record of training (ROT) for each operator that includes an expiry date by which time refresher training should be completed. It then states that operators should participate in refresher training on the theory portion of the course prior to this expiry date. This should be followed by both theory and practical refresher training prior to the next (second) expiry date on the ROT. On all future expiry dates the operator should receive theory refresher and on every other expiry date should receive practical refresher training.

It appears to be left up to the employer or the training provider to dictate just what this expiry should be. The CSA standard for Lift Trucks specifies a 3-year period however for some unknown reason this standard does not. It would seem a little obvious that a very similar time period would apply to cranes considering that under our Ontario Industrial Regulation 851 this equipment is all defined as ‘lifting devices’.

At Busch Training Inc. we have decided to use the same 3-year expiry for crane training as we do for lift truck operator training and as well for operators of aerial work platforms.

Again we are very excited about our new program, but we will also be introducing other new and creative material in the very near future.

Watch for future announcements!

Changes!!!

Well it has been about six months since Busch Training Inc. purchased this website and slowly began to make the appropriate changes.

Some major events have taken place over this time period including – a lousy worldwide economy and a troubled Canadian political situation, as well we also have a newly inaugurated US president for our neighbours to the south!

However there are some very positive things that have taken place from our perspective.

We have established a new strategic alliance during this time. Worksafe is a provider of ergonomic solutions and we have clients who are experiencing success with Worksafe’s innovative systems. We are currently in the process of establishing a website ‘link’ with Worksafe in order to better serve your needs.

We have also rolled out a new major training program for Industrial Hoisting, Rigging and Crane Operators. This new program material goes far beyond our current Crane Operator training which really focuses on more routine operations involving very little decision-making by the operator.

Our new hoisting and rigging program addresses the concerns of an operator who is required to rig, hoist and move a wide variety of products and materials on a more regular basis. This involves calculating the weight of materials, deciding on rigging attachments and devices to be used as well as rigging hardware to be employed and then plan the lifting, moving and rotating of loads. This is a comprehensive program involving a six hour theory and two practical evaluations, first as a single operator and then as a member of a 3 person team.

We are very excited about this new program and will be introducing other new and creative materials and courses in the very near future.

Watch for our announcements!