The WSIB’s horrific practice of deeming By Zaid Noorsumar In September 2007, Mark Winegarden damaged his vertebrae while working as a paramedic in Simcoe County. Attending an emergency call, he had to carry a cardiac-arrest patient down the staircase of his home when he felt a ‘pop in his back.’ His life would never be Continue readingThe phantom jobs of injured workers
injured workers
By Aidan Macdonald and Heidi MacFarland For years now, injured workers and frontline advocates have been sounding the alarm that Ontario’s Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB) has been “getting its financial house in order” through austerity and cost-cutting measures. Whether it be from slashing compensation for lost wages, denying healthcare treatment and medication, or Continue readingWorkers’ Comp is a Right!
By Bob Barnetson The Alberta Workers’ Health Centre recently concluded a multi-year project aimed at improving the health and safety of new Alberta workers. The summary report is here. One of the most interesting outcomes is a case study of a new Alberta worker who was injured on the job. “Betty” experienced great difficulty in Continue readingNew case study documents Alberta’s WCB failings
By Willy Noiles, President of Ontario Network of Injured Workers Groups Injured workers and supporters will rally at Queen’s Park on June 1st to commemorate Injured Workers’ Day. This year, our voices are raised to fight back against the epidemic of precarious, unsafe and toxic work, coupled with the severe austerity agenda that has taken Continue readingJune 1st is Injured Workers’ Day
By Dorothy Wigmore April 28 has many names. In Canada, it’s the Day of Mourning. In the United States and the United Kingdom, it’s Workers’ Memorial Day. The International Labour Organization calls it the World Day for Safety and Health at Work. Marked around the world, there’s confusion about its origins, even in Canada. Around 1983, Continue readingThe history behind Canada’s National Day of Mourning
By Scotty Hertz It’s extremely common if you work in the trades to stumble upon a stack of random garbage created by an anonymous sub contractor. The photo above might not look like much but I took it on the morning that the Canadian government announced a plan to “ban asbestos”. If it wasn’t marked Continue readingThe Asbestos ban: Hidden in the dust
By David Newberry Until 1998, Ontario worker’s compensation system compensated workers with mental health injuries, whether they were chronic, acquired over time, or acute, from a traumatic event. For many years, the basic principles of workers compensation allowed workers who suffered from conditions such as major depressive disorder, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder because of Continue readingWSIB ignoring workplace chronic mental stress
By Bob Barnetson Alberta is reviewing it workers’ compensation system for the first time in 15 years. A few weeks ago, Merit Contractors started a campaign with the basic message is that business is opposed to increased operating costs: The government’s intended direction is clear: it wants to make it easier to file claims and Continue readingEmployers nervous about Alberta WCB review
The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) and the Ontario Network of Injured Workers’ Groups (ONIWG) were joined by hundreds of injured workers, family member and advocates who are fighting for justice from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB). As rankandfile.ca has recently covered, the reforms to the WSIB are nothing but smoke and mirrors. Continue readingWeekend Video: Injured Workers’ Day Rally 2016
By Orlando Buonastella and Kathrin Furniss, Injured Workers Consultants. Injured workers and supporters will rally at Queen’s Park on June 1, Injured Workers’ Day, to challenge the most recent scandal involving the workers’ compensation board. Recently, the mainstream media discovered something injured workers had been warning about all along. The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Continue readingWSIB’s Reforms: Smoke, mirrors and broken workers
Injured workers Richard Hudon and Peter Page, with the support of the Ontario Network of Injured Workers’ Groups (ONIWG), embarked on a 600 km bike ride from Ottawa to Toronto to coincide with the June 1 Injured Workers Day demonstration at Queen’s Park Toronto. The cyclists were drawing attention to the current state of affairs Continue readingWeekend Video: Injured workers cycle for justice
My endless battle for workplace safety “It has been a long four years and even though we now have a lawyer, not much has happened, which is very frustrating,” reads a recent email from a former co-worker. Almost a decade later, specific workers are still being harassed in my seriously toxic former workplace. What happened Continue readingForced out by a broken system