B.C. LUMBER WORKER DISTRICT SAFETY DIRECTOR “CAMPAIGN PAID DIVIDENDS” Report prepared by District Safety Director John T. Atkinson for submission to the IWA Annual District Con- vention, and the District Safety Conference, disclosed that co-ordination of the Union’s safety program at the district level had returned important dividends in an accelerated campaign against accidents. The Safety Director's report stated in par “The experience of. the past year has shown that the Union’s campaign. against accidents, re- quires promotion and coordina- tion on a District-wide basis. The progress made has been the re- stilt of improved cooperation be- tween the B.C. District Council, the Local Unions, and the job safety committees. I wish, there- fore, to pay a personal tribute to the cooperative attitude taken on all sides toward the work en- trusted to me. I am convinced that the invest- ment of effort and money made by the Union in this combined effort has returned important dividends in the following terms: A reduced accident frequency rate in organized operations. An expansion of the area for organized union effort in acci- dent prevention. Improved “knowledge of acci- dent prevention techniques available to the Union. Improved safety education, with corresponding greater safety consciousness on the job. A more closely-knit safety organization throughout the Union. : The members of our Union should be aware that this work is still at the experimental stage. The full results cannot be re- alized in one year. It takes time to establish a working basis foy the IWA safety program in wide- ly-seattered and isolated opera- tions. It also takes time to train men in safety engineering from the Union’s point of view at the District, Local Union and job levels. One fact alone should impress us with the magnitude of the task which still remains. The log- ging industry reported 71 fatali- ties last year, with 5168 time-loss accidents. The evidence heard at the various inquests has made it unmistakably clear that many of these accidents could have been prevented. Our performance has not yet equalled our intentions. Duties of Director At the time of my appointment, an effort was made to define the duties of the District Safety Di- rector in consultation with the District Officers and members of the District Executive Board. This definition of duties should here be noted, as it was never the -intention to infringe upon the autonomy of the Local Unions and job safety committees. These duties, in-the main are: To co-ordinate safety activi- ties on a district basis as be- tween the Local Unions, and establish agreed-upon uniform- ity of policy. To relate the safety activi- ties of the Union to policies established at District Conven- tions and quarterly meetings of the District Council. “To assemble material and data at the District Office re- Jating to safety techniques, as a source of information for safety committee members in the Local Unions. To visit Local Unions and their job safety committees, in order to render any assistance required, with the object of furthering safety organization in every operation. To attend inquests, as re- quired by the Local Unions, in order to check on observance of safety regulations. To supervise safety educa- tion at the District level, using the means at the disposal of the District organization, as for instance, the B.C. Lumber ee Cee Worker and Green Gold. Subject to the District Ex- ecutive Board, to confer with the Workmen's Compensation Board officials, the representa- tives of the employers and various organizations, to secure » recognition of safety principles desired by the Union. To maintain an effective ex- change of information with other Districts in the Interna- tional Union, looking toward general improvement of safety standards. To maintain satisfactory contacts with safety organiza- tions and community organiza- tions, as permitted by the Dis- trict Office, in order to safe- guard the Union’s interests in all fields such as traffic and home safety, and enable the Union to make its contribution to the general safety move- ment. f Work Done The work required under sev- eral of the foregoing headings has been performed as required. A mass of material has been as- sembled at the District Office, which is a useful source ‘of infor- mation for the Local Union safety officials, and the B.C. Lumber Worker Safety pages. On safety matters, working re- lations have been established with government agencies and the employers’ safety agencies with resulting recognition of the Union’s purpose, regarding safety. i In cooperation with the Edi- torial Board of the B.C. Lumber Worker, all available material of interest has been published with the purpose of stimulating inter- est in the vital work of the job safety committees, A careful record has been kept of fatalities, and their causes, as a result of which important recommendations have been made to prevent recurrence of such ac- cidents. The trends of accident frequency in various operations have been checked to determine whether the necessity has existed for drastic action to secure ob- servance of the regulations. General Organization With the exception of inter- ruptions- due to weather condi- tions and last year’s strike, your Safety Director has placed him- self at the disposal of the Local Unions for intensive organiza- tion work in operations requiring attention. This work involved addressing Local Union Safety Councils and the -safety commit- tees in many operations. ‘When the opportunity arose, a tour of the operations were made in company with IWA safety committee men, to detect hazards, and ayouse interest in safety work. Various demonstrations were made of the effective uses of safety equipment, and the danger of unsafe working pro- cedures. In all this work, stress was laid on the fact that the safety program of the Union rests on the vigilance of the job safety committees. One important duty was to in- form the job safety committees of their duties and rights under the regulations and the contract, and to assist them in placing their safety work on a more effi- cient basis. It was also necessary on nu- merous occasions to interview management, with the job safety committee, in order to secure at- tention to violations of the acci- dent prevention regulations. This work was, when necessary, fol- lowed up with necessary inter-! views with the WCB officials to insist upon enforcement of the regulations. Work Appreciated It has been my experience, that the workers on the job, have fully appreciated this work on their behalf. In almost every case the visits have resulted in renewed interest in our safety program, and a fuller measure of cooperation with Union policy. It has been most significant, that the loyalty of the member- ship to the Union has intensified, upon recognition of the fact that the Union regards the protection of their lives as a major respon- sibility. As a result of the general or- ganization activity the following results may be recorded: In well-organized operations, the accident frequency rates have dropped substantially. The number of active job Safety committees has notably increased. Flagrant violations of the regulations by supervisory of- ficials have been prosecuted by the WCB, and penalties im- posed in the courts. In government and employer circles, the sincerity of the pur- pose behind the IWA Safety program has been fully recog- nized. Greater appreciation of the IWA Safety Program by the workers on the job has been constantly shown. Special Problems It is my duty to direct the at- |- tention of the membership to certain special problems encoun- tered during the effort to pro: mote more efficient safety meas- ures. The causes of accidents result- ing in a high fatality rate among fallers and buckers cannot be ignored. The cutting crews using power saws are facing entirely new hazards, which are receiving lclose study. Gréater precautions are necessary to protect the buckers now working in close proximity to the fallers. The results which often follow contract falling can be most menacing. To a great extent, the use of power saws has eliminated the uses of wedges and hammers. Experienced men claim that this increases the hazards in control- ling the fall, should there happen to be a lean or rot in the tree. One of the most prevalent causes of accidents in the woods has been slipping and falling. Supervision in the use of sharp caulks is, of course, one of the standard cures. With this, we have discovered the additional hazard of defective vision among many crew members. In one test conducted by scien- tific methods, more than 30% of the crew were found to be suffer- ing from defective vision, of which they had been unaware. This question will require further study in order to determine the proper solution. Fortunately, rigging and equipment failures* have been comparatively few but where they occurred have resulted in tragic consequences. The lessons learned during the year point to the necessity of continuing and vigilant supervision by experi- enced men, and the more.careful training of inexperienced men entering industry. As evidence that psychological factors play a part in accident prevention work, the record shows a marked upswing in the accident rate, during the period of negotiations immediately prior to the strike. We accept this evi- dence as indicating the desir- ability of freeing the workers from economic worries, when en- gaged in hazardous work. The Interior Attention is directed to the fact that accident frequency rates in the Interior are appallingly high. We attribute this to the fact that in many operations, the employers have almost complete- ly disregarded the accident pre- vention regulations. Coupled with this fact, we have found that the Union in that area has not yet had the opportunity to build up its safety organization, for ob- vious reasons. I submit that the safety prob- lems of the Interior require im- mediate attention, under the guidance of the District organiza- tion. I further submit, that at- tention to the safety problems in the Interior will prove a useful ladjunct to the necessary work of organization in that area. Initernational Council It was the privilege of your Safety Director to serve three years as Chairman of the newly- formed IWA International Safety Council. At the various sessions of the International Safety Coun- cil, views on safety problems in the fir belt and other sections were exchanged with mutual profit. Our brothers in the United States have been generous enough to state that our program in British Columbia has achieved results which they envy, as great- er progress on the whole has been made here in lowering acci- dent frequency rates in our or- ganized operations. They are now engaged in establishing a pattern of safety organization modelled after the one which we have found successful in British Columbia. HOR SEPLAY 18 WEVER FUNNY Dn App J would like to publi personal appreciation District No. 1 of the Ini America for the splendid prevention of industria industry. The realistic) serving on the Safety Province, the deep conce: on numerous occasions threatened the welfare 0 publicity given safety important factors in the accident rate which has t industry. The entire sa posed upon ‘yourselves a greater militant action equipment, the hazards dangers of selfish disint of economic security ani will be serious in aim, vi tive in action and wor' that past performance h