Encouraging lone worker safety compliance

Some blame the rail industry for increasingly relaxed safety regulations, while others blame Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway (MMA) — the company operating the train — for cutting back staff to maximize profits.

The CEO of Rail World, the Chicago-based company that owns MMA, was quick to blame the conductor.

"It seems an adequate number of hand brakes were not set and this is the engineer’s responsibility," Ed Burkhardt said at a press conference in Lac-Mégantic five days after the blast. "I don’t think he’ll be back working with us."

Locomotive engineer Tom Harding was working alone the night of the accident. Harding claims he retreated to a nearby hotel after applying 11 hand brakes on the train.

Just over two hours later, the train crashed and exploded at the centre of Lac-Mégantic, leaving nearly 50 people dead.

Regardless of where blame lies, following safety protocol while working alone is an issue for many Canadian organizations.

Positive motivation is the key to getting workers to comply with workplace safety policies, according to David Hughes, safety advisor at Pagnotta Industries, a Winnipeg-based construction company.

"I think positivity is one of the biggest keys," Hughes says, noting many of his workers work alone for the duration of the day.

"Everybody on a job site accepts that there are things that need to be done, so they don’t need me to keep harping on them."

Hughes reminds workers that if an accident occurs, it will be the worker’s family that pays the utmost price.

"I appeal to the emotions in any kind of training — whether it’s a group setting or individual," he says. "Your wife and children deserve better if something goes wrong."

He reminds his workers to question their actions throughout the day.

"What could possibly hurt you? What could possibly go wrong? And then what are you going to do to make sure it actually doesn’t go wrong throughout the day?" he says, adding he reminds them why this is important.

"You’re doing this for your families. You’re not doing it for me."

Hughes also suggests meeting with workers first thing in the morning or immediately following lunch.

"Science has proven that you make better decisions on a full stomach, so I do a lot of my training and coaching… during those times," he says.

Hughes recommends health and safety officials leave enforcement up to management and supervisors.

"My job is to make it easy for workers and to work with them. They know the job better than I do, so I listen to their concerns," he says. "I want to keep that communication open, that dialogue open."

An open line of communication is an important component to worker safety, according to the Hamilton-based Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), which recommends employers speak with workers about their job and the risks they encounter on a daily basis.

CCOHS also suggests employers assess the risk of lone work based on a number of variables, including the worker’s environment, the type of work being completed and the likely consequences of an emergency or injury.

CCOHS does not consider lone work to be inherently dangerous, but does recommend it be avoided when possible and tasks that have greater risk be completed at a time when another worker can be on-site.

There is limited legislation outlining the obligations of an employer to ensure the safety of isolated workers, according to Catherine Pronovost, a lawyer at Norton Rose Fullbright in Montreal.

Quebec does have one law that employers should pay attention to, she says.

"It stipulates that when a worker performs a task alone in an isolated environment where it is impossible for him to request assistance, it is the employer’s obligation to have a specific means of surveillance — continuous or intermittent," she says.

This should be easier for employees nowadays with the advancement of technology, but surveillance could also include someone physically checking in on someone on a consistent basis, says Pronovost.

"Although it’s not possible with all situations, the best practice would be to have both of these systems in place," she says.

Employers that are found to not be compliant with this law are facing stiffer penalties, says Pronovost.

Employees can find themselves in trouble, too.

"They have to take the necessary measures to ensure their health and safety, as well," she says.

"Those infractions… could also apply to a worker."

If an incident occurs and an investigation reveals that it is probable the employee did not follow the correct safety procedure, the employer may want to impose a disciplinary sanction, which could include dismissal.

"In a unionized context, the employee could file a grievance to contest such measure," says Pronovost.

"The arbitrator will have to decide on the basis of the balance of the probability. The employer will also have to demonstrate that the procedure was clear and communicated to the employee before the date of the incident."

CCOHS checklist

Assessing the workplace