Here at Goodman Elbassiouni LLP we are constantly working to advocate on behalf of our clients who have had the unfortunate experience of being injured at work. As much as we would love to believe that every workplace was completely safe and harmless, unfortunately we know that this is not the case. The truth is, employees are injured and sometimes even killed every single day in Canadian in workplace accidents. No matter what your profession, there is usually at least a little risk involved with your job for any number of accidents or diseases; however, certain actions are more likely to result in injury than others. Because we at Goodman Elbassiouni LLP deal with workplace injuries on a daily basis, we have decided to dedicate our next few blogs to the most common causes of workplace injury in the interest of public awareness. We know that lawyers aren’t always seen as upstanding individuals, but the truth is that we care, and if our little blog can prevent even just one serious workplace injury in Canada we will see it as a grand success.
According to statistics generated by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), one of the leading causes of workplace injury and fatality is a ladder, which is why we have chosen to discuss the risks associated with ladders in our first blog of the series. The misuse of ladders can lead to broken bones, musculoskeletal disorders, falls from height, electrical contact, and any number of other issues. They are used in almost all industries in Canada, and result in approximately 8 percent of all workplace related injuries and fatalities. According to Canadian Law and Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), employers are required to teach their employees about the risks involved with their job and how to avoid or minimize these risks, including safe ladder use; however, this is often not the case.
If your profession requires you to use ladders on a daily basis or even occasionally, then you should have been taught methods to minimize your risk of danger when using these climbing tools. In the construction, industrial, and mining fields, you will likely have received even more instruction about the specific regulations for ladder safety in your industry. If you haven’t received any information from your employer, then you should talk to them about the hazards related to these tools, and why they have neglected to inform their employees of the risks.
Some of the ways that you can minimize injury to yourself or others in ladder use are to: know the difference between various forms of ladders and their uses; check whether it is resting on an even surface; check whether it is wet or has a slippery surface before use; ensure it is held, tied off, or otherwise secured to prevent it from toppling; check how much weight the ladder can support and whether it is in good working order; and look at its positioning and any external hazards nearby that may prevent its proper use or provide extra danger such as crowds of people or electric lines.
As a worker, your number one priority should be safety – not only for yourself, but safety for others as well. At Goodman Elbassiouni LLP, we just want to remind you to stay safe Toronto – be proactive and make sure you and your coworkers don’t become another statistic!
