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<\/a><\/p>\n(CNW Group\/Canada\u2019s Building Trades Unions)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
During Monday\u2019s Day of Mourning, Sean Strickland, executive director of Canada\u2019s Building Trades Unions called on workers and employers across the construction industry to take a moment to honour workers who have been injured, fallen ill, or lost their lives on the job, and to renew a shared commitment to building safer workplaces for all.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the National Day of Mourning, Canada\u2019s Building Trades Unions stand shoulder to shoulder with workers across the country to remember those we\u2019ve lost to workplace accidents and occupational illness,\u201d he said. \u201cThis year, we\u2019re putting a spotlight on trenching safety, because no one should face life-threatening risks doing the job they\u2019re trained for. Our focus is, and always will be, on making sure every worker gets home safe at the end of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trenching accidents are some of the most preventable yet devastating incidents in construction, but they have been a tragic and recurring concern across skilled trades in recent years.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one should lose their life in a preventable trench collapse. Raising awareness, improving training, and enforcing safety standards must be a top priority,\u201d stated Strickland.<\/p>\n
According to the Association of Workers\u2019 Compensation Boards of Canada, 1,057 workers lost their lives due to workplace incidents in 2023, the most recent year for which complete data is available.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite the progress we\u2019ve made, construction remains the fourth highest occupation group for workplace fatalities, at a rate of 20.2 deaths per 100,000 workers,\u201d added Robert Kucheran, chair of the Canadian Executive Board of Canada\u2019s Building Trades Unions. \u201cWe cannot accept these numbers as inevitable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must remember the dead and continue to fight for the living,\u201d said Strickland. \u201cOne life lost on the job is one too many\u2014and it\u2019s on all of us to make sure no worker ever has to face that risk alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s Building Trades Unions are an organization representing 14 international unions in the construction, maintenance and fabrication industries that collectively represent 600,000 skilled trades workers in Canada.<\/p>\n
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