On April 14, 2014, the Minister of Labour, the Honourable Shirley Bond, announced that the chair and board of WorkSafeBC agreed to appoint Gordon Macatee as Administrator of WorkSafeBC in order to drive an agenda of change.
The focus of the Report is on Occupational Health & Safety inspections and investigations.
The Macatee Report is now public. It is 192 pages in length and contains 43 recommendations.
Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Minister Responsible for Labour Shirley Bond said that key recommendations for immediate action include:
- Move forward with the development of occupational health and safety policies to specify reasonable steps for employers, workers, and supervisors to take to address combustible dust hazards.
- The Memorandums of Understanding with Police Services and the Memorandum of Understanding with the Criminal Justice Branch should be signed.
- Implement the sustained compliance plan for sawmills as outlined in the report.
- Develop a plan for ongoing inspection of other wood product manufacturers and pellet mills by WorkSafeBC Prevention Officers, with appropriate enforcement efforts to bring this sector into sustained compliance.
Dr. Dave Baspaly and Grant McMillan of COCA will analyze the Report and will provide updates on its recommendations in the near future.
The WorkSafeBC announcement follows:
Richmond, B.C., July 15, 2014 — WorkSafeBC has accepted the WorkSafeBC Review and Action Plan report released today by Shirley Bond, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Responsible for Labour and will immediately turn its attention to implementation of the recommendations for which it is responsible.
The WorkSafeBC Review and Action Plan was prepared by administrator Gordon Macatee, who was appointed by WorkSafeBC’s Board of Directors to address six priorities outlined in Minister Bond’s April 14, 2014 letter to WorkSafeBC Board chair George Morfitt.
The Action Plan and its recommendations will strengthen various aspects of WorkSafeBC’s operations, and in particular occupational health and safety inspection and investigation.
Mr. Morfitt says, “WorkSafeBC’s enduring goal is to sustain a world class health and safety regime across all our province’s workplaces. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to express my appreciation for the comprehensive analysis undertaken by Gordon Macatee. WorkSafeBC’s executive team, along with key staff, have worked extremely hard to support Mr. Macatee in his work and I thank them for their efforts.”
While the search for WorkSafeBC’s President and CEO is underway, the Board will be appointing Diana Miles, Senior Vice President, Worker and Employer Services and COO, as interim President and Chief Executive Officer.
See the full WorkSafeBC press release and the Provincial Government press release.