To all forestry contractors operating in British Columbia.
Re: Attached Outlines of the Qualified Company Initiative now known as SAFE Company.
Qualified Companies – An Introduction.pdf
Qualified Companies – Current Activities.pdf
The following provides an overview of current activities in support of Qualified Companies’ program development.
The BC forestry industry has consistently been one of the most dangerous industries in BC. The BC Forest Safety Task Force was established in July 2003 to develop an action plan to eliminate fatalities and serious injuries in the forest industry.
The BC Forest Safety Task Force Final Report set out recommendations that will, when implemented, fundamentally change how health and safety is treated in the forest industry.
Qualified Companies addresses the following Task Force Recommendations in the Final Report of the Forest Safety Task Force:
• To provide a financial incentive program to encourage injury prevention and the development of effective workplace health and safety management (Task Force Recommendation #14)
• To make Qualified Companies pre-qualification standard a condition of doing business in the BC Forest sector (Task Force Recommendation #4)
• To contribute to the forest industry safety infrastructure and expand awareness that Unsafe is Unacceptable (Task Force Recommendation #3)
Qualified Companies aims to be the over-arching vehicle for industry leadership, safety accountability, and overall improved safety performance in BC’s forests.
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A Note from John Betts:
The first half day of the WSCA Conference Wednesday 1 February 2006 will be dedicated to the workplace safety practices and procedures that will become the standard for firms participating in silviculture and fire-fighting activities in B.C. in the very near future. In particular the session will feature a description of the SAFE Company initiative.
To prepare you contractors for this session and to convince those of you who are dithering on attending I have attached a draft internal document that gives a pretty good idea of where this program is going.
Unless you have been under a rock the last few months safety in the forest sector has been a big story and there is a considerable push to move from talk to implementation. Many of you may need to prepare now for the coming audits and reviews.
The Conference will be a significant place to get your bearings as a company and for us to collectively respond as a sector. If you have questions that need answers before the conference please call.
John Betts
Executive Director
Western Silvicultural Contractors’Association
Phone: 250-229-4380
Web Link: http://www.bcforestsafe.org/qualifiedcompanies/qualifiedcompanies.asp