Resource Articles
| June 2010 |
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Summer Hazards – Are You Prepared?
Is your workplace ready for the challenges
of heat stress, smog and West Nile Virus? Do you have a
plan to train and indoctrinate young and inexperienced,
new workers into your workplace? Each summer, thousands
of workers are exposed to these unique hazards.
Heat Stress
 Overexposure
to heat can stress the body’s cooling system and when
combined with other stresses like hard, physical labour,
loss of fluids, fatigue or some medical conditions, it can
lead to heat-related illness, disability and even death.
Heat stress is the overloading of the body’s
cooling system. Both young and old are susceptible and in
Ontario, heat stress is usually a concern during the summer
at the early part of the season when people are not used
to the heat.
Significant sources of heat inside workplaces include furnaces, bakeries, smelters, foundries and heavy equipment. For outdoor workers, direct sunlight is the main source of heat. In mines, geothermal gradients and equipment contribute to heat exposure. Humidity also contributes to heat stress.
For additional help with heat stress concerns and information about our heat exposure measurement service contact our occupational hygiene specialists at 1-800-406-IAPA(4272).
Young
Workers
Summer is a key time for young people to enter the workforce,
either for temporary, summer jobs or the start of their working
careers. Young workers need you to spend more time explaining
the job, providing training and supervision. Make sure that
all of your hazards are identified and that these new and
young workers know how to safely do the job. A thorough orientation
program sets these enthusiastic workers off to a great start.
The safety of new and young workers will be the focus of a four-month enforcement blitz across Ontario that began in May 2010.
Health and safety inspectors at the MOL will check to ensure young and new workers:
- Have proper orientation training and are being adequately supervised
- Meet minimum age requirements
- Are protected by safety measures to prevent injuries
Particular attention will be focused on workplaces where many young and new workers are employed including stores, wholesalers, restaurants and vehicle sales.
This year marks the third in a row that the ministry has conducted a blitz on behalf of young and new workers, a high risk group. New workers at any age are more likely to be injured during their first four weeks on the job than at any other time.
Between 2004 and 2009, 27 young workers aged 15-24 were killed and 466 others were critically injured at work.*
 First
4 Weeks
New and young, inexperienced workers are more than 5 times more likely to be injured during their first four weeks of employment. IAPA’s First 4 Weeks is a multimedia package consisting of both supervisor and worker programs – it trains the supervisors to help train workers. This two-part kit fully prepares the supervisor with unique tools and strategies for training employees simply and effectively.
West
Nile Virus
 Summer
brings the dreaded mosquitoes and with them the threat of
West Nile virus (WNv), a disease spread by infected mosquitoes.
While the overall risk of infection from a mosquito bite
is very low, the period of greatest risk occurs between
the end of July and the end of September. People at greatest
risk of developing severe symptoms appear to be between
40 and 50 years of age, and have a weak immune system or
a chronic disease such as diabetes, cancer or heart disease.
Download this informative information piece to learn how
to protect yourself, your family and your workplace.
Ontario’s Court of Appeal has given a worker paralyzed by West Nile virus the go-ahead to seek benefits from his insurer. The Court rejected the insurer’s view that a disease is not an accident and ordered the insurer to pay up. (Kolbuc v. ACE INA Insurance, 2007 ONCA 364).
Smog
“Smog” originally referred to a mixture of smoke
and fog in the air. Today, “smog” describes
a noxious mixture of air pollutants that are often seen
as a brownish-yellow or grayish-white haze. But smog isn't
always visible. It's a mixture of air pollutants, including
gases and particles that are too small to see.
Smog is a major concern in most major urban
centres, but because it travels with the wind, it can also
adversely affect sparsely populated areas as well.
Since smog is a mixture of air pollutants,
its impact on your health will depend on a number of things,
including:
Those most at risk are people who suffer from
heart and lung problems. Even healthy young adults can have
difficulty breathing on days when the air is heavily polluted.
Minimize your exposure to smog and its potential
health effects by:
-
Checking the Air Quality Index in your
community, especially during the “smog season”
– April through September. Tailor your activities
accordingly by:
- Avoiding or reducing strenuous outdoor activities,
especially during the afternoon when ground level
ozone reaches its peak – choose indoor activities
instead
- Avoiding or reducing exercise near areas of heavy
traffic, especially during rush hours
- Talking to your doctor if you have heart or lung
problems about additional ways to protect your health
when smog
levels are high
Fending
Off UV Light
It's not just your skin that's at risk of burning from ultraviolet
light (UV) this summer. UV light, especially reflected light
from water, sand, pavement or, for that matter, snow, can
also cause eye burn. Repeated often enough over a period of
years, eye burns can permanently damage the eye's lens and
retina.
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