Community members held a moment of silence for those who have lost their lives doing their jobs.
A Day of Mourning event was held at Nanaimo’s Bastion Square Park on Saturday morning, with a few dozen people attending.
While the event was primarily to honour the lives lost, another theme this year was the message that violence and harassment are not part of the job.
Ellen Oxman, president of Nanaimo, Duncan and District Labour Council, shared a statement from the Canadian Labour Congress stressing that violence and harassment in the workplace can happen just once or as part of a pattern.
“We can and must lead by example on preventing violence and harassment in the workplace,” she said. “We need to challenge it when we see it.”
Sheila Malcolmson, NDP MP for Nanaimo-Ladysmith, said the federal government needs to ensure that laws and regulations governing workplace safety are continually strengthened and said the government must lead by example.
“Let’s keep pushing and demanding results because it’s our collective responsibility to ensure lives are not in danger and that workers’ rights are respected so that every worker gets home at the end of their shift,” she said.
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A Day of Mourning event was held Saturday, April 28 at Nanaimo's Bastion Square Park… https://t.co/xtHmOPBlAL pic.twitter.com/XYEfVzRcig
— Nanaimo Bulletin (@NanaimoBulletin) April 28, 2018
Nanaimo MLA Leonard Krog, whose father drowned in a job accident, said with the workplace deaths have come better working conditions for all.
“And for that I’m grateful, but it is a hell of a sacrifice in order to achieve that,” he said. “So let us remind ourselves each and every day in the workplace to support one another, to point out when people are being stupid or taking a risk, because it’s not just themselves they may place at risk, it is the lives of people they work with.”
Doug Routley, MLA for Nanaimo-North Cowichan, pointed out that when efforts are made to improve working conditions in one sector or one community, that can be shared and make a difference for workers elsewhere.
“The only way we can make as worthy as we can our remembrances of people who have suffered or died at work is by elevating the conditions for every one of our brothers and sisters and all people who work in British Columbia,” Routley said.
According to Day of Mourning B.C., there were 158 work-related deaths in B.C. in 2017.
Partners supporting the Day of Mourning include the B.C. Federation of Labour, the Business Council of British Columbia and WorkSafe B.C.
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