Latest News

It is incredible how often the CMMS takes the blame for why the maintenance department is not able to make any significant improvements. Some claim their systems are hopelessly antiquated. Others say they bought the wrong software package or that users are not doing what they are supposed to do. However, the CMMS is rarely the bottleneck to improvement. The real opportunity to exploit even a legacy CMMS starts with resolving those nasty issues that have plagued the company for years: fundamental strategic, policy, procedural or management issues — not system issues — that impede attempts to maximize the value…

In any business venture, we get results through careful planning of activities and through measuring not only the results but the activities that the people undertake to get those results. The creation of safety excellence is accomplished in exactly the same way. I’m currently preparing a report for a client and I’m listing the things I’ve observed at their various workplaces when I visited over a two-week period. My personal observations and the discussions I had with over 1,100 employees and contractors will be categorized into the areas of discussion listed below. What I’m recommending to my client isn’t really…

TORONTO — Two of Canada’s biggest private-sector labour unions are formally exploring the possibility of creating a new, merged organization, a move they believe could spark other unions to join them. The Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers, which have a total of more than 320,000 members, said Tuesday they have been holding preliminary discussions for weeks. CAW president Ken Lewenza said the move comes as a response to the “incredibly hostile economic environment” its members face and will give the unions a better stance against a “confident employer base” and Canada’s majority Conservative government. “We have…

Parmalat Canada Inc., a producer of milk and dairy products based in London, Ont., was fined $100,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a worker was injured. On Dec. 18, 2009, at the company's facility in Mitchell, Ont., a worker was checking that a pipe system had been properly cleaned. The cleaning process involves running hot water through the pipes. While taking apart one of the valves in the pipe system, the worker was suddenly sprayed by hot water. The worker received first and second degree burns. A Ministry of Labour investigation found that there…

Shortages in the skilled trades are already having an impact on Canadian employers, issuing an early warning for the demographic crunch expected in the next decade. Construction, mining, energy, manufacturing and service sectors all report real and anticipated shortages that will pose a pan-Canadian challenge to the country’s economy. Addressing the challenge requires both awareness and commitment from stakeholders across Canada, including business, labour, educators and various levels of government. Apprenticeship contributes to solving skills shortages and provides opportunities for knowledge transfer from one generation to the next, while also engaging young people at a time when youth unemployment rates…