Ministry of Labour focuses on summer students in workplace safety blitz

Ontario’s Minister of Labour says young people, under the age of 25 and those starting a new job are the most at risk for being injured or killed at work.

In January of 2018, 25-year-old Kalvin Richards was killed while cleaning a canola oil tanker in Hamilton.  He left behind a baby daughter, and a distraught partner, who told CHCH news at the time that Richards often complained about the conditions at work.

The questions of work safety also rang in the minds of friends of 28-year-old Adam Sura, and 18-year-old Zach Plater. Both were working as arborists for Miller Tree services in Milton in May of last year when they were struck and killed by a tree during a windstorm.

Minister Monte McNaughton announced the province-wide safety blitz in London to make sure employers are following rules and are providing their employees with adequate training to prevent tragedies.

The safety blitz begins on July 15th and runs until August 30th. The Ministry of Labour visited nearly 2000 workplaces across Ontario in the safety blitz last year.

In last year’s summer safety blitz the Ministry of Labour says they issued over 75 000 orders and requirements for workplaces not abiding by the guidelines including 116 stop work orders- which is a legal notice that requires employers to immediately suspend work that has been deemed unsafe.