Af . s B.C. Page Nine LUMBER WORKER and prepare 1950 pro- s from all Local Unions at the District Safety cil continue to press all aly to establish safety com- in all their individual tions. it we commend the District ifety Council for existing used in the B.C. Lumber rand urge its continua- n in the future. Ve further urge that more se be made of radio, films and iture, and other means of lucation on Accident Preven- ‘or co-operation with man- nent and government in all of Accident Prevention. that the District Safety uncil draw in from_ local fety Councils and Safety mmittees information per- ling to Safetv Education Accident Prevention and h same in B.C. Lumber orker, it District Safety Council not less than once every ‘Reduce Death Toll three months, with full Safety Council to meet with District Executive Board one day prior to Convention each year. EXECUTIVE ELECTED Action by the District Con- vention confirmed the recom- mendations of the District Safety Council and elected to the Executive Committee of the Safety Council, the following: Director, Michael Skuzanski, Local 1-217; Ist Vice-Director, John T. Atkinson, Local 1-80; 2nd Vice-Director, H. J. Bruch, Local 1-423; 3rd Vice-Director, Fred Fieber, Local 1-71. Provision was also made for the appointment of eight zone directors, three for the Van- couver Island and Queen Char- lotte Islands area, three for the Interior, Prince George, Cran- thing can fail, without consequently he who oes deeper than he who on, selfishness and av- the factors of safety prevented. the curtailment of ‘ions, General dis- ere penalty that can ig man. movement is to de- brook and Kelowna, and two for the Lower Mainland. “In future the Safety Direc- tors of each Local will be added to the District Safety Council. Cause And Cure The “cause and cure” con- test, announced in earlier is- sues of the B.C. Lumber Worker, will be extended an- other two months to permit wider participation, it was an- nounced by the Editorial Board, this week. Grand prize is a 17-jewel Churchill wrist watch, anti- magnetic, shock-proof, dust- proof, and engraved with the prizewinner’s initials. A cash prize of $3.00 will be awarded, in addition, for each en- try selécted”for publication dur- ing the contest. The contest is open to all [WA members, exclusive of the officers of the District Council and Dis- trict Safety Council. Each contestant is asked to submit a brief account of an ac- tual and typical accident occur- ring in the branch of the industry where he is employed. A proposed “remedy” for the accident to prevent recurrence should also accompany the de- scription. This contest is intended to pro- vide IWA members with the op- portunity to make a practical con- safety. never turn your back to a falling tree MACHINE MAN IN FALUNG FIR, IT BENDS Down A SMALL SAPLING-~--~- This Week’s Lesson This week’s accident diagram carries the warning—NEVER TURN YOUR BACK TO A FALLING TREE. The accident illustrated in the accompanying diagram oc- curred last December. A 15- inch fir was being felled, in an area with numerous saplings and snags. Going down, fhe tree struck a sapling causing it to whip back and forth. It hit the top of a snag, which had a decayed base, but was brittle and solid at the top. The snag did not fall immedi- ately, but had a delayed action of seyeral seconds. When it did fall it broke near the centre on the felled fir tree. The top section struck the machine man, who had his back turned to the falling’ tree. He did not see the snag fall. — SMALL Fin SAPLINY Benome AS FIR FALLS fi weno PAULER Contest Extended - SAPLING SPRINGS BACK, BRUSHING SNAG WHICH STARTS To FALL SECONDS AFTER FIR - ~~ ~—- ain HEAD FALER {)Stourimme To { MActine crane tribution to educational work on SNAG BREAKS INTO 3 PIECES - HITS MACHINE MAN ON THE HEAD AT POSITION MARKED X POSITION OF vcTIm Safe Work Better Than Compensation CHRIS PRITCHARD ~ ‘Trade union member of the Workmen's Compensation Board, Chris Pritchard, told the IWA District Convention or- ganized labor ‘had wakened to the realization that safety was more important than, compensa- tion, Reviewing progress made in ac- cident prevention, the speaker complimented the IWA_ Safety Council on the interest shown in a practical effort to reduce acci- dents. He recalled that public hear- ings on the accident prevention regulations advertised in 1945, had secured response from only two unions, Recent hearings had met with more widespread re- sponse, with the IWA making a creditable contribution. Safety Program Winning The WCB representative pre- sented the Convention with com- parative statistics to show that the combined efforts of labor, management and government, were steadily reducing the toll of deaths and injuries in industry. Claims received by the Board in 1949 totalled 69,252, as com- pared to 74,000 in, 1948. Number of fatalities had declined to 210, but was still too high, he urged. Out of the total of 69,252 claims dealt with in 1949, only 465 had been rejected, he in- formed the delegates. Logging time-loss accidents in 1949 totalled 5,107 with 64 fa- talities as compared to 71 in 1948. Sawmill operations accounted for 4,500 time-loss accidents in 1949, and fatalities had declined from 24 in 1948 to 14 in 1949. The evidence was conclusive, he contended, that systematic ‘ob- servance of safety precautions, could still further reduce acci- dents, by elimination of the causes. Rehabilitation The rehabilitation work under- taken by the Board had grown with amazing rapidity, Mr. Prit- chard explained. When the- clinic was first opened in 1943, the average daily attendance was 150. At the pres- ent time it averages 493 daily, to make a year's total attendance record of 128,139 for 3,693 cases. Out of every dollar assessed against industry, he stated, 96 cents was paid to the workmen in the form of medical service or compensation benefits. Adminis- trative costs were only 4 percent. Delegates were urged to remind all injured workmen of the impor- tance of completing the report form which constitutes the work- er’s claim for compensation. End- less difficulties had arisen because of failure to comply with this simple requirement. Enforce Safety Speaking as a trade unionist, Mr. Pritchard warned that em- ployers were expected to enforce the regulations. It also followed that the workers should demand observance. . He advocated that trade unions should secure clauses in their agreements with employers which would make unsafe conditions a breach of the agreement, and pro- tect workers in refusal to work under unsafe conditions. The safety pages of the B.C. Lumber Worker, he asserted, were well worth the oe all lumber workers, their full attention and support. —