CAUT HEALTH AND SAFETY CONFERENCE REPORT

The CAUT Health and Safety Conference was held in Ottawa on November 7-9. Most Faculty Associations were represented. The programme was intensive, opening on Friday afternoon with an address by Penni Stuart, CAUT’s President, who underlined the importance of promoting awareness of Health and Safety issues. Jim Turk, CAUT’s Executive Director, followed with a presentation stressing the newly created Health and Safety Department at CAUT headed by Laura Lozansky, CAUT Occupational Health and Safety Officer.

The Keynote address “SARS Aftermath – Pandemic Planning and Emergency Preparedness in the Workplace” was delivered by Dr. Tony Mazzuli, of Mount Sinai Hospital, Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Toronto. He drew a chronology of the development and effects of the SARS epidemic in Toronto in 2003, and referred to the lessons learned during that episode, which have improved the ability to react to the projected onslaught of the next pandemic. Measures to deal with communicable diseases are an important issue for workplaces that gather large numbers of people into close quarters, feed large numbers of people or maintain large numbers of residential units, such as hospitals and nursing homes; so universities have substantial risks and need to plan for responses.

This presentation was followed by a panel on Occupational Cancer: Margaret Keith, University of Windsor; Dr. John Ruckdeschel, Karmanos Cancer Clinic; and Ruth Grier, Former Ontario Minister of Health and Minister of the Environment. Keith focused on breast cancer, examining environmental factors and chemical exposures. The objective of her research is to identify occupational cancer risks, and provide sufficient evidence for the cause of the disease in order to ensure workplace compensation. Ruth Grier referred to the lack of priority that prevention is given in our health institutions, and appealed for more attention to research funding for the study of the interaction of chemicals and people’s health.

Jim Brophy, University of Windsor, gave a moving presentation about the asbestos tragedy in Sarnia, Ontario, centre of the Canadian petrochemical industry with the largest toxic releases in the country. His paper “Asbestos - Update and Latency” revealed through the Holmes Foundry Case the indifference of the employer as workers were exposed to the highest levels of dust ever found in the industry. He also referred to the building trade workers case study, and the study on petrochemical workers, and condemned the continuing support of the Canadian government of the exportation of asbestos to developing countries. Later in the conference Valence Young, from the Elementary Teachers Federation, spoke on “Health and Safety Grievances and Work Refusals” in connection with a primary school contaminated with asbestos. She is a determined woman who led a long and difficult fight to bring safety to the classroom.

Saturday morning began with a presentation on “Workplace Chemicals and Occupational Disease” by Andy King, Director of Health and Safety, United Steelworkers. He talked about the “Obligation to transform the very nature of work itself” by forging a union between labour, the environment and the academy in order to fight against pesticides and prevent the exposure of workers to toxic chemicals. Rachel Massey, University of Massachusetts, talked about the Toxic Use Reduction Institute created to improve chemical regulation and categorization. This American institution endeavors to encourage chemical substitution, product redesign, operations and maintenance, and in-process recycling in order to reduce the use of chemicals in the workplace. This is part of a State initiative that promotes pollution prevention programmes, laws restricting individual chemicals, comprehensive chemicals policy initiatives, etc. This presentation cum discussion was followed by a workshop on “Chemicals in the workplace – Fine Arts, Labs, & General”, conducted by Jamie Wright, Health and Safety Representative, Canadian Auto Workers; and Carolynne Fardy, Thompson Rivers University. The purpose of the workshop was to help recognize wide- spread use of toxic substances in the university work place, and alert us to the lack of legislation regarding toxic exposures to workers.

In the afternoon, Mariette Pilon spoke on “Member to Member Conflict” in the context of workplace hazards, arguing that there was an equally toxic effect in such environments. She stressed that the employer is responsible for a productive workplace, so excusing member-to- member conflict and allowing the degeneration of a workplace is a violation of the Collective Agreement by the employer. With regard to universities, she noted that the university was neither a private club nor a family. It is a workplace like any other where the employer has the obligation to provide a safe and healthy environment to its workers. She added that academic freedom is not a license for harassment. A number of court cases dealing with member-to-member conflict were cited. The advice given was that all complaints should be investigated by Faculty Associations. Inertia, the common attitude of ignoring the discomfort of a member unable to perform his/her duties in accordance with his/her conditions of employment in safety and well being, creates preventable physical, emotional, and mental situations that destroy in some cases the professional and personal lives of members. Renée Ouimet, Mental Health Association, Ottawa branch, stressed that mental health is part of Health and Safety, and that workers should be able to expect understanding and accommodation from employers and employees alike in order to deal with specific cases. Antonio Pizzino, CUPE, talked about “Workplace Harassment.” He defined harassment as “abuse that arises from unethical behavior that leads to victimization.” He referred to a 2004 Quebec case that acknowledged psychological harassment resulting from a harmful work environment where psychological integrity was compromised.

Sunday’s sessions dealt with “Electromagnetic Fields.” Magda Havas, Trent University, presented a very scary introduction to the harm that EMF’s have on people’s health, in the form of radio and television, radar, computers, mobile phones, cell phones, electric blankets, wireless technology, compact fluorescent lights, etc. She gave examples specific to university campuses, and some advice to avoid exposure. I suggest that there should be a joint invitation from AUFA and the Administration of Acadia University to our campus to take measurements in areas such as residences, offices, etc. in order to determine how safe we all are.

Laura Lozansky closed the conference with observations on “Academic Staff Associations Role in Relations to Joint Health and Safety Committees.” She offered her expertise to orient anyone interested in gaining information on Health and Safety matters.

Sonia Thon

AUFA alternate member on JOHSC

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