Mining companies, labor leaders differ on Ontario’s Bill 208

The Ontario government got an explicit message recently when the legislature’s standing committee on resource development rolled into Timmins; mining companies and mining unions aren’t happy with the way the Liberals want to improve safety in the workplace. Committee chairman Floyd Laughren, the New Democrat MPP for Nickel Belt, and his committee colleagues got a clear indication of the mining community’s attitude toward safety in the workplace. The mines want things left the way they are and unions want more clout in the decision-making process.

Under current Ontario law, a worker has the right to refuse to work in unsafe conditions. Under proposed amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act, that same worker would gain the right to have an operation, or a portion of it, shut down until the problem is corrected.

That doesn’t sit well with mines in the Timmins and Kirkland Lake area.

“We believe no one person can fully understand the complexity of modern day technology and be sufficiently informed to shut down a process,” said John Pappone, manager of employee relations for Kidd Creek Mines in Timmins.

“This lack of understanding of the overall consequences of shutting down a process may lend itself to potential spills, environmental upsets, not to mention lost production. Our experience under the current Act is that health and safety hazards are being identified and work refusals have occurred,” Pappone adds.

“But the hazards have been identified by workers on the floor and their supervisors. Work refusals have been resolved by the worker and the supervisor. That’s the internal responsibility system. We use it, we believe in it, and we see no reason to change it.”

With 2,607 full-time employees, Kidd Creek is one of the largest non-union companies in Canada. Company officials pride themselves that since Kidd Creek was first discovered in the early 1960s, the company has had a lower than average rate of lost-time injuries.

Pappone pointed out that 70% of Ontario’s workforce is non-unionized. The Liberal government is proposing the establishment of a new Health and Safety Agency that would oversee the enforcement of occupational health and safety legislation in Ontario. The government wants the committee to be split equally between management and labor representatives. Kidd Creek officials argue that non-unionized workers would be discriminated against and they’re calling on the government to strike a committee that would reflect a truer picture of the Ontario workforce.

The status quo also got a boost from Placer Dome’s general manager at the Dome mine in South Porcupine.

“I believe that attitudes in these circumstances play a major role in safety performance,” said Bob Perry.

“There is a need to develop positive attitudes through more trust and co-operation in the workplaces. This cannot be achieved by legislation alone. The internal responsibility system helps to promote co-operation and safety performance.”

Perry said each worker has to be responsible for his own safety. If an unsafe condition is encountered, the worker has the right to refuse the work. In the internal responsibility system, management leadership and employee co-operation will have a greater effect on safety performance.

Representatives of the United Steelworkers of America union from Timmins and Kirkland Lake didn’t see eye to eye with their counterparts in management. When it was their turn to speak, the union representatives had harsh words for government and mine management.

“We would like to point out that over the years, our union has spent millions of dollars and an untold amount of man-hours in delivering health and safety programs to our members,” said Claude Garneau of local 4584 at Kirkland Lake’s Macassa mine.

“We feel it is high time the government assist us in this endeavor. As for the right to stop unsafe work environments, we do not want, nor do we intend to use such a power for frivolous reasons. We want it in order to ensure we will come home from work alive and in one piece at the end of a shift,” Garneau added.

“As a rule, whenever a complaint (over health and safety) is lodged with the Ministry of Labor concerning a violation, a ministry recommendation that the problem be resolved internally will be issued instead of the inspectors issuing orders or prosecutions on behalf of the ministry. The internal responsibility system could be made to work if it were used properly by all involved, namely management,” said Garneau.

The Canadian Diamond Drilling Association wants the new legislation to incorporate clauses for unique situations. The chairman of the CDDA’s Bill 208 subcommittee, Guy Raymond, stressed the point that diamond drilling is not a typical working environment.

“For example, in diamond drilling, we could not accept a worker refusing to move the drill from one location to another in –40 degrees weather because, as mentioned earlier, we are contracted to perform this work on Ontario soil, during Ontario winters. The worker is fully aware of his duties and the conditions he will encounter,” said Raymond.

The CDDA says the authority to stop work should be shared between a worker and his supervisor. The CDDA says giving a certified member unilateral authority to stop work is contrary to the spirit of the joint approach to health and safety and could lead to major conflicts and work against the intent of the legislation.

The Ontario legislature resumes sitting in late March. Bill 208 has already been given two readings. The committee on resource development expects to receive more than 100 submissions from various groups around the province.

Committee chairman Floyd Laughren says there are two clear issues that have to be addressed before the legislation is passed. The first is the question of the extent to which a worker can legally effect change, either by refusal to work in unsafe conditions or, as is proposed, by requesting that operations be halted until the alleged safety concern is corrected.

The second concern is the makeup of the government’s proposed Health and Safety Agency. Laughren says the Minister of Labour, Gerry Phillips, has his mind made up about how many amendments he will allow to his proposed bill.

“I’m not so sure he’s willing to budge on a 50-50 split between labor and management because the agency’s chairperson is supposed to be neutral,” said Laughren.

The public hearings wrap up in late February. The committee won’t be making its recommendations until March.