Dear Greenhouse Flower Grower

Flowers Canada (Ontario) participates in a Technical Advisory Committee under the Occupational Health and Safety Act with the Minsitry of Labour.  One aspect of MOL enforcement is through a proactive blitz on a specific safety hazard.  This February will be a blitz on forklift safety.  Firms with the highest WSIB benefit payouts based on forklift injuries will be the key target.  A secondary target with be firms with a poor general WSIB record or a history of worker complaints.  A third target is purley random.

This is the first time a farm workplace has been included in a blitz.  It is focusing on greenhouse and mushroom operations because they are relatively large employers compared to other farm commodities.

What should employers do?  Attached is a 3 page document offered by the new consolidated safety group that includes Farm Safety.  It provides some rationale for the blitz, what to expect and some websites to assist you in the event your farm is visited. Click here to view this document.

It should be noted that farm workers are not obligated to be "certified drivers" as in industrial workplaces.  Employers are obligated to train drivers and drivers must exhibit the skills required to operate a forklift in a safe and appropriate manner.