Municipal Safety News
" Safety is something that happens between your ears, not something you hold in your hands. "
– Jeff Cooper, creator of the "modern technique" of handgun shooting,
expert on the use and history of small arms, and former United States Marine.
Message from Jim Moroney, Executive Director
Every year, April 28 is set aside to honour and remember those who have lost their lives, were injured, or disabled in the workplace. This National Day of Mourning also serves as a call to action to educate others about health and safety rights, responsibilities, and prevention measures to take place not only on this day but throughout the year.

I am sure the long winter has everyone looking forward to spring and summer. It is during this time when we see an increase of seasonal employees being hired. As such, it is important to ensure health and safety requirements are put into place to avoid workplace accidents and incidents. A majority of seasonal workers are between the ages of 15 and 25 and may be at risk to be injured on the job. Please empower your young staff with effective OHS training and education so that they are well prepared for the job and are safe in their work.

With many municipalities facing lawn maintenance in the upcoming months, Ken Glubish, a Special Projects Team Lead with AMHSA, spent a considerable amount of time working with health and safety representatives throughout Alberta to create a checklist that can be tailored to your municipality’s needs. This is a handy tool in identifying potential opportunities for improvements in your safety management system and operations with a specific focus on riding lawn mowers and grass trimmers and can be found by clicking here and typing in “Lawn” in the search line. Ken is also working on the Guidelines which should be uploaded soon onto our website.

Ken also created several helpful documents to be utilized when reviewing current practices in municipal arena operations with a focus on toxic gases and identifying potential areas of improvements in safety management systems. The Arena Inspection Checklist, Environmental Release Sample Template, and Toxic Gas Safety Guidelines for Municipal Arena Operations can also be found on our website by clicking here and typing in “Arena” in the search line. We appreciate the amount of time and valuable information members provided to Ken that allowed him to create these important documents to assist Alberta’s municipalities.

Stay tuned for a specific announcement on new classroom and online courses that we will be sending out soon. In addition, be on the lookout for our Annual Member Survey in late spring.

If you have any questions about AMHSA courses or would like to provide feedback, I invite you to contact our Corporate Office in Calgary.

Jim Moroney IHT, BSC, CRSP, CSP
Executive Director
OHS Report
Help Shape Alberta's New Workplace Rules
Albertans will have a say on new rules for workplace harassment and violence and joint work site health and safety committees.

The new Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act takes steps to protect workers from harassment and violence in all its forms. It also requires joint work site health and safety committees or a worker health and safety representative, depending on workforce size.

The input will help shape specific rules around these new requirements to ensure the legislation is fair and balanced.

As of June 1, the new OHS Act will:

  • Define harassment and violence in all its forms, including sexual and domestic violence.
  • Require employers and supervisors to take reasonable steps to protect workers from harassment and violence and to investigate incidents.
  • Require workers to refrain from causing or participating in harassment and violence.
  • Have an appeal process for workers disciplined for bringing harassment and violence issues forward.
  • Require joint work site health and safety committees for work sites with 20 or more workers.
  • Require a worker health and safety representative for work sites with five to 19 workers.
  • Require employers and prime contractors to work with joint work site health and safety committees or representatives.

Albertans can provide written submissions until April 9. Specific rules regarding harassment and violence, as well as training and operation of the joint work site health and safety committees, will be added to OHS regulations on June 1.


Direct link to OHS proposed regulation content for Workplace Harassment and Violence:
AMHSA Announcements
Please stay tuned for AMHSA's announcement on new classroom and online courses!
Municipal Moments
Safety Council Meetings

 All of our municipalities are encouraged to attend our safety council meetings according to the area of Alberta they represent. These meetings are for our members only. Breakfast snacks and lunch are provided free of charge for our members.

Joint Northern and Southern Alberta Safety Council
  • Date: Thursday, April 12, 2018
  • Time: 10 am – 3 pm
  • Location: County of Paintearth/Town of Castor's Council Chambers, highway 12 and highway 36
  • Presentations by OHS include Asbestos Awareness and Bill 30 Implementation
Northern Alberta Safety Council
  • Date: September 13, 2018
  • Time: 10 am – 3 pm
  • Location: Town of Stony Plain - Heritage Park Building, Spruce Grove Hall, Main Floor, 5100 41 Ave, Stony Plain (invitations and details to follow in August)
Southern Alberta Safety Council
  • Date: September 27, 2018
  • Time: 10 am – 3 pm
  • Location: Town of Cochrane - 101 Ranche House Road Conference Centre (invitations and details to follow in August)

Alberta Cities Safety Council
  • Date: June 5, 2018
  • Time: 10 am – 3 pm
  • Location: City of Red Deer- C201/202, Building 300, Civic Yards, 7721 40 Avenue, Red Deer (invitations and details to follow in May)

To learn more information about our Safety Council Meetings, please click here .
Audit Dispatch
AMHSA is grateful for its 2017 Certificate of Recognition program participants! Your cooperation in the external peer audit process, participation in training, and timely turnaround for audit revisions is truly appreciated. All 2017 audits have been completed and successful employers can expect their PIR refund cheques from WCB mid-April. 

2018 will be another exciting year for our PIR/COR department. The recent changes to the OH&S legislation will result in updates to our audit-related courses (Health and Safety Management Systems, Health and Safety Auditing, and Audit Refresher), and to our audit tools. The biggest change will be the addition of a new element on “Joint Work Site Health and Safety Committee or Health and Safety Representative,” which will include approximately 12 questions. As soon as the provincial standards related to these courses and the audit protocol are adopted by the Certifying Partner group, we will share information about the changes with our COR holders and auditors through Auditor Updates . 

To subscribe, please email krystal@amhsa.net or click here .

Communication continues to be a priority for our COR team. In February, an auditor update was distributed by email ( click to view ). The annual letters to participating CAOs, which detailed PIR responsibilities and confirmed status in the program were distributed by mail in March. This year, we also emailed copies of the letters to our safety contacts/auditors in each municipality. Another auditor update will be sent by the summer.

Training of new and certified auditors continues this year. Almost 150 auditors have attended Refresher training since it was updated in 2017, and many more are registered for offerings in 2018. The March and June offerings of Audit Refresher are full, but we have spaces available in the September 4 th and 11 th classes. The Health and Safety Management Systems and Auditing – Small Employer (SECOR) course has been scheduled for September 19 in Red Deer. We also have Health and Safety Management Systems and Auditing courses for large employers scheduled in October (Calgary and Sherwood Park). Call 1 800 267-9764 to register.

If you have questions related to the Partnerships in Injury Reduction (PIR) program, the Certificate of Recognition (COR), Small Employer COR, or the schedule of upcoming courses, please contact our Sherwood Park office at 1 800 267-9764.
April 4 -6, 2018:
Sheraton Hotel
Red Deer, AB
April 9-10, 2018:
Hyatt Regency,
Vancouver, BC
April 15-18, 2018:
Banff Park Lodge,
Banff, AB
September 5-7, 2018:
Medicine Hat, AB
Details TBA
September 16-19, 2018:
People, Purpose, & Passion: The Pathway to OHS Success
Niagara Falls, Ontario
September 26-28, 2018:
Westerner Park,
Red Deer, AB
AMHSA is proud to co-host the 45th Health, Safety, & Utility Conference & Trade Show!

December 4-6, 2018
Sheraton Hotel, Red Deer, AB
December 4, 2018 - Pre-Conference Sessions, including AMHSA's OH&S Legislation Course and Joint Work Site Health and Safety Committees.

December 5-6, 2018 - Conference highlights include:
  • Welcome from the Government of Alberta and Partnerships in Injury Reduction
  • OHS Compliance Update
  • Sessions regarding safety and utilities, including:
  • Workplace Violence Prevention and Supervisor's Role (AMHSA)
  • Trends in Water and Wastewater
  • Ground Disturbance
  • Toxic Gases in Arenas and Lawn Mowing Project Report (AMHSA)
  • Equipment Operator Safety
  • Commercial Vehicle Compliance
  • PPE Head to Toe
  • Remote Water Meters
  • Closing Keynote (to be announced)
  • ...and more!
February 21-22, 2019:
Facing Forward
Edmonton, AB
AMHSA Corporate Office
Calgary
1-877-537-9063 
AMHSA Northern Regional Office
Sherwood Park
1-800-267-9764