WorkSafeBC reviews multiple sclerosis policy | Manitoba targeting injury claim suppression: Minister | Registry complete for former workers at Newfoundland asbestos mine | Reporting asbestos mandatory in Saskatchewan public buildings
BRITISH COLUMBIA
WorkSafeBC reviews multiple sclerosis policy
WorkSafeBC is undergoing a review of its current multiple sclerosis (MS) policy and is asking for stakeholders to provide their inputs by Sept. 27, 2013.
The current WorkSafeBC policy provides that the onset of MS could be precipitated by a compensable traumatic injury in an individual who is predisposed to the disease.
Concerns have been raised regarding the scientific basis for this policy, according to WorkSafeBC. The review is to determine if there is scientific basis for this policy.
Visit the WorkSafeBC website to find out how to provide feedback on the MS policy review.
MANITOBA
Manitoba targeting injury claim suppression: Minister
Manitoba’s new action plan for workplace injury and illness prevention will incorporate three reports that are part of a wide-ranging review of workplace injury and illness prevention, says Family Services and Labour Minister Jennifer Howard.
The three reports come from the Minister’s advisory council on workplace safety and health; Manitoba’s chief prevention officer for workplace safety and health; and Paul Petrie, a British Columbia-based expert on worker compensation systems who completed a review of the impact of the current workers compensation board (WCB) experience-rating system on claim reporting and claim suppression, and identified strategies to promote injury and disease prevention.
“Specifically, the reports show there are instances of employers discouraging injured workers from making compensation claims,” she says. “This is illegal and our government will do more to prevent it from happening including legislative changes to increase penalties for claim suppression and to make it easier to submit legitimate claims.”
NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
Registry complete for former workers at Newfoundland asbestos mine
A registry project created to collect data on the work and health history of former workers at the Baie Verte asbestos mine site on the northeast coast of Newfoundland and Labrador has been completed.
The registry is intended to provide information related to asbestos exposure and its health impacts. The information will assist in the adjudication of occupational disease claims and help medical professionals and patients under care for asbestos-related illness, according to the Newfoundland Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission (NWHSCC).
“The registry will ultimately take away the burden of information gathering for any of those workers who become ill,” said NWHSCC CEO Leslie Galway. “It will be of tremendous value for many years to come.”
SASKATCHEWAN
Reporting asbestos mandatory in Saskatchewan public buildings
Reporting asbestos in public buildings is now mandatory in Saskatchewan. It is the first province in Canada to pass such legislation.
Information regarding asbestos will have to be disclosed in a public registry under the new law. There will be a six-month grace period to comply, according to the province.
Buildings owned by the province — such as hospitals, schools, or those used by Crown corporations — must be listed in the registry if there is asbestos present. Buildings will be added to the registry as regulations become better defined.
