Clinton News-Record, 1977-03-24, Page 12J k's Jottings from Queen's Park: do agricultural workers need safety act?
PAGi12—C-LINTON NEWS -RECORD, THURSDAY, MARCH 24,1977
yrioni the Bills granted
Royal Assent during the last
session 91 the Legislature was
the new "employees' Health
and Safety Act", which
brought into force key
rec4?..rpmendations of the
Royal Commission on the
Health and Safety of Workers
in Mines. The provisions
enacted so far include
establishment within a single
ministry - the Ministry of
Labour. of all responsibility
for occmpational health and
safety legislation. Further
plans are in progress to ex-
tend the application o: the
proposals at the—core of the
report to include industrial
Huron Volunteers explain function
By the Volunteer Bureau
The Huron Volunteer
Bureau should, we hope, be a
familiar name to many of you
by now. We would like to take
this opportunity to explain to
you something of our
organization and the nature
of our work.
The Bureau is set up to
serve all of Huron County.
Headquarters is an office in
Ontario Street United Church
in Clinton; there are other
occasional offices in Exeter
and Wingham.
Perhaps you are not sure
just what a "volunteer
bureau" does, and why we
would like your support.
The idea of the Huron
Bureau is to find- out what
kinds of services are needed
by various residents of our
county, and who can
"volunteer" to provide those
services. It is also our job to
know what groups and
organizations are doing in the
line of volunteer work, and to
use these groups as sources of
assistance.
In other words, we try to
see that maximum good is
obtained from existing
programs, and that groups
are identified and com-
municate with each other.
This saves the cost and waste
of duplication. Often a service
is already available; people
are simply,not aware of it.
Many people get the im-
pression that 'a volunteer
bureau deals mainly with the
elderly or the handicapped.
We do a lot_of work with these
citizens, but we are really
designed to help'4NYBODY
who has a requesl`-kr_ any
kind of volunteer service.
Because this is a rural
area, widely spread out, we
find a lot of our requests are
for people to driNe someone to
• a town for a doctor's ap-
pointment; to get groceries;
their income tax forms. One
tall came in for a group of
volunteers to paint a building
on the Square in Goderich.
Another appeal is for
tutoring; a young fellow who
is partly blind "needs extra
help with his schoolwork if he
is to be able to continue in the
regular school system.
A major project coming up
is our Friendly Visiting
Program. Watch for more
news on this. We will be
holding an information
workshop in -Goderich, in
April, and we hope for a good
public response.
The aim of this program is
to encourage personal
friendly contact - a "good
neighbour" policy- between
volunteer visitors and anyone
who wants the service: shut-
ins, the elderly, the han-
dicapped, or j -1st anyone who
wants some companionship.
In some instances, it will be
helpful if the volunteer can
shovel a pensioner's walk
after a heavy snowfall, or
perhaps pick up a few
groceries or a prescription
for a neighbour, when down
town.
We want to encourage the
kind of easy, sociable neigh-
bourhood co-operation that
should ideally come naturally
in every community. The
emphasis in this project is not
so much on material aid as on
friendly human contact. You
can check on your neighbour
regularly to see how things
are going; this is particularly
good in a case where a person
has a chronic ailment or some
physical handicap.
Even if you can offer only
an hour a week, please do.
That hour could mean much
to someone who is lonely and
trying to manage on a
minimum of outside
assistance.
We'll be telling you more
to make special trips such as about the Workshop in a little
to "specialists" in London. while. But please, even if you
This reflects our country cannot attend it, give us a call
living -- it is always necessary and your name, if you are
to go somewhere , to get interested in the Friendly
anything done, even if it is Visiting Program. If you
just a mile or two. would like to be visited, we
We have currently, a want to know; if you want to
program in operation, be a visitor, we'd be glad to
helping senior citizens with have you in our group of
volunteers. It need not take
too much of your time, and
the personal rewards and
satisfaction to both parties
will be a fantastic return on
your investment of time and
concern for a neighbour.
To volunteers in general,
we extend a warm invitation
to join us. Do you, have a
special skill or interest you
can offer? Even if it's nothing
specific, give us a call. Surely
we can find something for you
to do. To anyone wanting a
service -- please do not
hesitate to ask the Bureau. If
we can't help directly, we'll
try to fidd you someone who
can.
Call the Volunteer Bureau
at 482-3037.
Shadow Box closes,
new store to open
IT
The Shadow Box antique
and gift shop opens today
(Thursday) under a new
name and new management.
The New Shadow Box will
operate under new owner
Cobie Amsing, who began the
Dutch Store with her husband
some 15 years ago.
The new shop will no longer
deal in antiques but will take
on the sale of Huron County
souVenirs, fancy ' baby
clothes, and. blooming cac-
tuses, Mrs. Amsing said.
She hopes to add the sale of
herbs, grown as a hobby by
her husband, and promote
more local crafts for tourists.
Mrs. Amsing has been out
of the retail business for two
years, since the sale of the
Dutch store, and said she
looks forward to getting back
in business.
Meanwhile, former owner
Rita Ryan is . planning to
move to Kitchener to take on
a new career which may not
lie retail -oriented, she said.
Mrs. Ryan founded the
Shadow Box almost four
years ago, and said she
wouldn't have missed the
experience of meeting so
many people through her
business, "for all the tea in
China."
With Mrs. Ryan's depar-
ture, Clinton loses one of its
most active supporters.
Mrs. Ryan was- active on
the Clinton Public Hospital
Auxiliary, planning board,
businessmen's association,
and was a major orgahizer in
the 1975 Centennial
celebrations.
safety and construction
safety, and to produce in a
comprehensive omnibus 134,11
an occupational health code
for working men..and women
throughout Ontario.
jn this connection, there
hls been considerable
discission as to whether
occupational health and
safety standards for the
agricultural industry should
be established by legislation.
The Minister of Laboqr spoke
on- this matter recently,
askirkg whether there is a
need for occupational health
and safety standards in the
agricultural industry,
whether legislation can fulfill
that need, and whether
legislation, if introduced,
would 'be successful in
achieving its goal.
Workmen's Compensation
Board rates 943 and 953,
which cover most segments
of agriculture, indicate the
need for a stronger effort to
create a safe and healthy
agricultural workplace. In
these categories, the number
of deaths caused by accidents
increased by 32 percent from
1975 to 1976 - from 34 to 45. The
_
primary cause of death is the
tractor roll-over, which
caused one out of three
agricultural fatalities.
Legislated safety standards
alone cannot improve the
situation, and must be
combined with a responsible
attitude on the part of both
employees and employers.
In a brief to the' Ministry of
Labour, the Farm Safety
Association indicated that it
is "in accord and agrees with
the initiative and formulation
of occupational safety and
health legislation that would
protect agricultural workers
in Ontario". It is understood
that the leaders of the Ontario
Fruit and Vegetable Growers
Association also support the
concept. However, both
associations have reser-
vations.
Some people argue that the
agricultural industry is
unique and that standards
applicable to manufacturing,
construction or mining may
not be appropriate. However,
standards for mining Are not
necessarily appropriate for
the construction industry.
The fact that standards must
be set for each industry,
taking into account the
special characteristics qf that
industry, does not mean that
separate legislation is
required. Agriculture's
specific problems could be
accommodated in a general
Act with appropriate
regulations.
Time pressures must be
taken into account with
respect to the agriculture
industry, because delays in
harvesting, for any reason,
could result in massiv
• financial losses. No doubt,
there will be concerniest an
entire harvesting operation
might be disrupted by one or
more workersUho believe the
workplace to be unsafe or
unhealthy. While no-one
would deny the agricultural
worker a right and respon-
sibility available to con-
struction, industrial or
mining workers, the
agricultural employer's
financial investment and
right to earn a fair income
must be protected. •
As the Minister of Labour
has pointed out, there are a
number of unanswered
questions. Should oc-
cupational health and safety
legislation cover the entire
agricultural industry, or only
the 22,000 or more employers
now contributing to the
W.C.W.? Should legislation be
phased in over one year, five
or ten?
I should be very interested
to hear your views on this
subject of protection for
agricultural . workers. There
is, of course, a, program to
alert .people to the potential
hazards of chemicals and
physical agents and to
educate the agricultural
worker about correct tr.
However, possibly legislative
action should be considered,
and this is a matter which
needs to be discussed fully by
the agricultural community.
To date the Labour Safety
Council has been th
formal
chan
n
e
e primary
through
which the advice Pt:Ille
private sector is obta60,0.
This Coundil is to be, now
stituted and expand0d,
reflect new responsibilitie4In
the occupational health field.
The final structure of the new
advisory body has, as yet, not
been established. The
Minister of Labour has in-
dicated that the agrictiltural
community should have a
permanent voting delegate on
the advisory body. This
representative would bring to
the policy-making process
expert knowledge of the
unique situations which
confront agricultural worker
and employer.
This entire question of
occupational health and
safety is very important. in
the last analysis, every in-
dividual has a responsibility
in this respect, However,
legislation can do much to
improve health and safety
standards. To what extent
and in what manner this can
be done for the agricultural
industry is a matter of con-
cern to us all.
ONTRY
STORE HOURS:
MONDAY TO THURSDAY 9 AM 6 IVI
FRIDAY 9 A.M. 9 P M
SATURDAY 9 A.M. 6 P M.
SUNDAY 11 A.M. 5 P M.
The Management Reserves the Right
to limit quantities to normal
family requirements
•
•
STOP
BEFORE YOU BUY A MOTORSYCLE SEE
THE LINE UP OF YAMAHA ROAD BIKES,
ENDUROS AND MOTOCROSS.
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