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The B.C. trucking industry is well on the road to demonstrating its commitment to health and safety with the presentation of its first ever workplace health and safety award.

The Trucking Safety Council of BC presented its first Certificate of Recognition award to Clark Freightways alongside Minister of Labour Iain Black, MLA Douglas Horne and WorkSafeBC.

“Trucking is the lifeblood of every industry in B.C., and the statistics on injuries and fatalities in trucking is sobering. This just has to change,” said Minister Black. The Minister discussed the importance of businesses keeping their employees safe. He commended Clark Freightways on their demonstrated commitment to safety and the Trucking Safety Council of BC for their work to further this commitment in the industry.

“”There were a third fewer injuries in the trucking industry in 2009 than there were in 2008, through the partnership of organizations such as the Trucking Safety Council of BC and WorkSafeBC,” he said.

Clark has proven their dedication to safety excellence through their involvement in the COR training program and commitment to the continuous improvement and endorsement of their safety management system.

Donna Wilson, Vice-President of Industry Services and Sustainability for WorkSafeBC, spoke of the importance of ensuring that workers make it home at the end of the day and congratulated Clark Freightways in taking a leadership role to make a difference in safety in the industry.

“Workplace injury rates in trucking are double that of any other industry, and this team has decided that this is not acceptable. This means putting more focus on preventing injuries, and in particular fatalities,” said Wilson.

Background

In the five years between 2003 and 2007, 63 workers died, 281 were seriously injured and almost 8,400 were off the job in the general trucking and moving and storage sectors of the trucking industry. As a result, employers lost 496,000 days of productive work and paid out $170.6 million in associated costs.

Through focused management training and a company audit system, the Trucking Safety Council of BC’s Certificate of Recognition program promotes a positive safety culture within organizations by encouraging a genuine belief that workplace injuries like these can be prevented. The program provides an opportunity for trucking industry employers to take a proactive role in promoting health and safety in the workplace, encouraging them to place equal importance on health and safety as on other necessary ingredients of business success, such as sales and productivity.

The COR program promotes the idea that health and safety management is not just another legal responsibility or burden. When handled correctly, it can offer substantial cost savings for companies. Employers that participate in the program benefit from reduced WorkSafeBC premiums and lower compensation costs, including annual WorkSafeBC premium rebates of up to 15 per cent.

Earning a COR demonstrates Clark’s commitment to providing a positive workplace culture of safety and the genuine belief that worker injury and illness can be prevented. This principle is promoted and shared throughout the organization, from senior management and supervisors to front-line employees.

A superior safety culture recognizes the symmetry between the health and safety of workers and business profits and productivity. COR training has provided Clark Freightways with the tools, information and knowledge that contributed to the company’s health and safety program and policy that currently forms part of the company’s day to day operations, nurturing a successful and sustainable corporate culture of safety.

Visit the Trucking Safety Council of BC’s website for more information on our organization and programs. www.safetydriven.ca

PHOTOS OF THE EVENT AND AWARD OF CERTIFICATES TO CLARK BY THE MINISTER AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST