Safety and Health Committee Representative.

Introduction..

Under Manitoba law, workplaces with more than 20 workers are required to have a safety and health committee (SHC). And those with five to 19 workers are required to have a worker safety and health representative (WR). There are some different variations for the construction sector but the basic role remains the same.

Responsibilities of committees/representatives are broad and play a key role in protecting the safety and health of all workers. However, with today’s current demographics, SHC's and WR's may need to consider the unique needs of the older worker. In Manitoba, recent research (link to full report below) found that over 40% of the workforce is over the age of 45. This trend will continue over time as birth rates are not keeping pace with people over the age of 45. Those workers 45 and older account for over 40% of all workplace injuries.

Responsibilities..

The workforce will continue to age. This demographic is more prevalent in some sectors, such as health care and agriculture, but is an issue in all sectors. Employers will need to retain older workers and will need to focus on their health and safety to assist in retention. SHC's and WR's can play a key role by bringing the issue forward and discussing potential changes benefiting both workers and employers.

Get HR involved..

Ask your human resources staff or others responsible for tracking staff, for specific information on the demographic of your workplace. Be prepared to present information. Begin with general information about the aging of the workforce and move on to specific issues you have noted in your workplace. The best way to get specific information is to ask workers themselves about their experiences and what issues they would like to see addressed. Managers will also likely have observed concerns and speaking with them as well will provide a clearer and more balanced perspective. 

Ongoing education about safety and health issues is a requirement for SHC's and WR's. You might put this issue forward as a topic to have someone provide information to the committee. This might be someone within the company, for example a safety and health manager or human resources person. Of course you could also encourage members to go through the educational materials and these learning modules.

The role of the committee..

It is also possible that no one thinks it’s an issue or that there should be no specific interventions made just for older workers. Some will fear that looking at "older workers" may be discriminatory. But the role of a committee/rep is to identify hazards and make recommendations to address them. If the inspection process identifies these unique issues they need to be addressed. And most times, any intervention will benefit all workers in any case. 

An all-encompassing and practical Safety and Health Program, required by law in Manitoba workplaces with more than 20 workers, needs to be put in place and regularly reviewed and adjusted when there is room for improvement. An effective safety and health program will benefit all workers but SHC's and WR's may need to introduce the issue of an aging workforce and determine if additional, or different interventions may be required.

Safety and health laws..

Safety and health laws apply equally to all such as the Workplace Safety and Health Act in Manitoba. Under the Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health Act, employers have primary responsibility for ensuring a safe and healthy workplace, and can face penalties and fines for putting the health and safety of workers at risk. The law focuses first and foremost on the employer’s responsibility to eliminate workplace hazards.

The Workplace Safety and Health Act supports every worker’s right to a safe and healthy workplace. Whether a chief executive officer or the newest worker hired, everyone has a personal and shared responsibility for working together co-operatively to prevent workplace injuries and illness. 

Because employers have the greatest degree of control over the workplace, they also have the greatest degree of legal responsibility for safety and health. But this does not relieve supervisors and workers from the duty to co-operate in controlling workplace hazards and take necessary precautions to protect themselves and others from hazards.

Due diligence..

Employers must be able to demonstrate that they have exercised "due diligence" in all aspects of safety and health. Due diligence contains these concepts:
Reasonably practicable – is determined by asking what a reasonable person, in the same position and circumstance, would do to prevent an incident.

When making that determination, three main factors need to be taken into account:


• Foresight
• Prevention

• Control

Age does not dictate which safety and health requirements apply. But there may be some areas that put older workers at more risk. For example, as we age our vison tends to decline and more lighting is necessary to manage risks. Good ergonomics are good for everyone but can benefit older workers in particular in preventing musculoskeletal injuries. This might include such things as mechanical lifts for heavy jobs.

Other regulations..

Human rights laws prohibit discrimination based on a number of things including age. Manitoba's Human Rights Code would prevent employers from singling out older workers if they were concerned about their ability to do the work. If a concern exists, employers must apply and address this concern across all workers, not just the specific individuals. SHC's and WR's can play a role by ensuring employers and supervisors are aware of these protections. It should be noted that Manitoba has no mandatory retirement age. Nor is there a mandatory age when one can no longer be covered by WCB.

Duty to accommodate can be explained as "the responsibility to address and remove unreasonable burdens or barriers based on a protected characteristic that limit access to opportunities and benefits available to others." Age is one of the protected characteristics in the MB Human Rights Code. Examples of reasonable accommodations include making existing facilities accessible; job restructuring; part-time or modified work schedules; acquiring or modifying equipment; changing tests, training materials, or policies; providing qualified readers or interpreters; and reassignment to a vacant position.

SHC's and WR's are in a strong position to educate both workers and employers about these rights and to recommend changes for the benefit of older workers.

Points to consider..

• Review injury data, accident reports, and workers’ compensation records.
• Conduct regular walkaround inspections to identify potential health and safety hazards.
• Conduct safety and health job analyses to identify problems. 
• Design and conduct health and safety surveys. 
• Collect and review Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs). 
• Ask your safety and health or human resources manager for data and other relevant information
• Propose and evaluate various ways to improve health and safety conditions. 
• Ensure recommendations are acted upon. 
• Review and evaluate corrective actions taken by management. 
• Collect and review information on new chemicals, procedures, and processes before they are introduced. 
• Participate in and or review studies conducted by outside researchers or consultants. 
• Establish or improve procedures for employees to report safety hazards or suggest improvements without fear of reprisal. 
• Respond to concerns raised by workers, supervisors and managers. 
• Recommend training for new employees, supervisors, and managers and refresher training on health and safety practices, procedures and emergency response. 
• Plan and organize training programs. 

Have a comprehensive picture..

Once you have a comprehensive picture of the situation you will be better equipped to make recommendations that will support the health and safety of your older workers.  At the same time, improvements in this area will benefit your employer in terms of fewer incidents, better morale and workers who are able to remain employed.

Maintaining healthy behaviours..

Common conditions in older age include hearing loss, vision loss, cataracts, back and neck pain and osteoarthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, depression and dementia. As people age, they are more likely to experience several conditions at the same time.

Maintaining healthy behaviours throughout life, particularly eating a balanced diet, engaging in regular physical activity and refraining from tobacco use, all contribute to reducing the risk of diseases, improving physical and mental capacity. Supportive physical and social environments also enable people to do what is important to them, despite losses in capacity.

Educate members and employers..

SHC's and WR's can help educate members and employers about ways to support workers to stay healthy and how to modify the workplace to retain these workers.

Some suggestions include:

• Organizations should invest in innovative and useful technology that helps their older working population. This includes large computer monitors for those with vision loss, amplified phones for hearing loss, ergonomic designs for work such as mechanical lifts. Employers that are proactive about providing a supportive work environment will be able to keep workers longer.
• Offer workplace flexibility
• Utilize older workers as mentors
• Provide and encourage the use of health and fitness programs
• Encourage socialization, e.g. a baseball team or other activities

Recommendations.

The National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety in the U.S. provided the following recommendations to help aging workers remain safe and healthy and manage chronic conditions:

• Prioritize workplace flexibility. To the extent possible, give workers a say in their schedule, work conditions, work organization, work location and work tasks.
• Match tasks to abilities. Use self-paced work, self-directed rest breaks and less-repetitive tasks.
• Avoid prolonged sedentary work. Prolonged sedentary work is bad for workers at every age, the agency said. Consider sit/stand workstations and walking workstations for workers who traditionally sit all day. Provide onsite physical activity opportunities or connections to low-cost community options.
• Manage noise, slip/trip and other physical hazards.
• Provide and design ergo-friendly work environments, including workstations, tools, floor surfaces, adjustable seating, better illumination where needed, and screens and surfaces with less glare.
• Use teams and teamwork strategies for aging-associated problem solving.
• Provide health promotion and lifestyle interventions including physical activity, healthy meal options, tobacco cessation assistance, risk-factor reduction and screenings, coaching, and onsite medical care. Accommodate medical self-care in the workplace and time away for health visits.
• Invest in training and building worker skills and competencies at all age levels.

These points suggest some potentially common interventions to keep older workers safe and healthy There are of course many interventions that will need to be job specific and are best determined within your workplace with input from workers themselves.

Generational differences..

Another area to consider are generational differences. There are many stereotypes that focus on the negative, on all sides of the spectrum creating poor morale and potential risks. Understanding generational differences can help in identifying solutions.

Many of these issues can be managed in the workplace to allow workers to continue to work successfully and to the best of their ability. Interventions to address issues will not only benefit workers but employers as well. With an aging population, employers will find it more and more of a challenge to find workers. And if older workers leave, the loss of experience can be a major problem.

Many effective workplace solutions are simple, are cost effective, and can result in large benefits if implemented properly with worker input and support throughout all levels of management.

Risks facing older women..

Another area to consider is that of the unique risks facing older women.

Here are a few suggestions:

• Bathroom access – as we age, especially those who have had children may need to use a washroom more frequently. In production or industrial and construction environments this can be an issue.
• Sexual and Other Harassment – an issue for everyone, harassment is illegal in the workplace. However, polls and surveys consistently show that women are almost four times more likely to have been harassed than men 
• Age based discrimination – this may be an issue for all genders but research shows age-based discrimination and ageism are becoming more common as the work force ages
• Menopause – aging women may experience health effects that can affect their ability to perform as productively as in the past and can cause stress and repercussions from employers
• Stress, mental health and work-life balance – while this may be an issue for everyone, research shows that caregivers are often women.  As they get older, they may find themselves in a situation where they may be responsible for a variety of people outside of work such as grandchildren, perhaps a disabled child still at home and elderly parents.