Jackie Spain is a local provider for health and safety training for businesses in Golden and British Columbia.
With a focus on education, training, consulting services in the fields of health and safety, transportation of dangerous goods, communications and mediation, Spain has spent many years working with everyone from small businesses to the federal government.
“I was in the health and safety field doing things locally. Then I was asked to be a part of a large project by Work Safe,” she said. “I started Golden Solutions and it took off through word of mouth.”
Spain works on many large projects, but also works with any sized company to help make sure they are where they need to be.
“My skill set is unusual because I can do any aspect of health and safety, but also any aspect of transporting dangerous goods,” she said. Spain explained she not only works with the provincial regulations but also federal regulations as well as helping businesses set up their health and safety systems, making sure their employees are up to date within the regulations so there are no problems.
The transfer of dangerous goods falls under federal jurisdiction. Spain said it is important for companies to understand, people who are in non compliance could end up in jail or lose their business.
“When you take a dangerous goods course you need a certification. People need to write an exam, and based on that I can give them a certification,” she said.
She added that, “Any work place that is a certain size has to have a joint committee and has to train them yearly,” she said.
After working in the medical environment for a number of years Spain has taken this knowledge to help private and public areas of the industry
“I specialize in the medical area because I was a lab tech. I am the consultant for the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) on how to move dangerous specimens in and out of where we have to send them,” she said.
Spain trains people in the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) this deals with hazardous materials in the workplace.
She also works with companies that need mediation on different levels.
“I am looking at doing more conflict resolution or mediation. This could include incidents of bullying or harassment,” she said. “When I leave a room I want people to understand each other and their perspectives so they can problem solve in a constructive way.”
Working with companies in Golden is something she throughly enjoys doing.
“I work with small companies who are just getting up on their feet, so that as they grow they follow the regulations of the Workers Compensation Act. They have to come in to the compliance of the law,” she said. “It is about my personalized service. I know my clients very well and cater my services to what works for them. I customize materials for them at no charge and really work with them and get them up and going.”
Spain also said it is nice to work with local companies and help them get to where they need to be.
“I come right to you and you can tell me what you want. I bend very different ways to help the customer get what they need,” she said. “I always work with local businesses to give them the best price I can because this is my community. I feel very strongly about bringing my skills back to my community.”
