–Carola Mittag
I’m not a builder; however, every year before Christmas, I singlehandedly build an entire village. It’s not your traditional build as the homes are prefab, the streetscape is haphazard, and all this done under heavy snow and unlit conditions until the electrician in me adds the lighting. This project takes approximately two days.  

It is my beautiful Christmas Village which I curse from the moment I dust off the boxes containing all the houses, figurines and wires for the individual lights that light up the houses. It is a chore, and this year I vowed that it would be the last time because of all the work.

Then I thought of my parents who purchased these houses over time and what joy they had in setting them up. My parents are both gone but this little village brings back wonderful memories of both, them and Christmases past so, no I will not get rid of the village. Setting it up will always be a labour of love.

But this year I made a change to the village. Because of its approximate thirty-year age the houses were still individually lit by small, incandescent bulbs with a wire running to each house and needing to be plugged in to a power bar. Because there are eleven houses, I needed two power bars end-to-end to plug into the wall outlet. This already made me uncomfortable. As I was clipping one of the lights into the Faversham Lamps and Oils House, (a little irony here I think), the little bulb exploded in my hand, leaving lots of tiny glass shards in my palm and an exposed filament (a wire filament heated until it glows) laying on the artificial, very flammable snow.

Things I did wrong:

• I didn’t check the bulbs to see if they were working before I clipped them into their respective houses.
• I was trying to skip a step to save time by not checking the bulbs first.
• I should never have used two power bars end-to-end. How many times are we warned not to overload sockets with multiple extenders?
• I was working with live wires. I should have left all the wires unplugged until the bulbs were clipped into their respective houses.

Building my small village could have had dire consequences. I learned that even my build should have had a work and safety plan in place. Lesson learned! The footnote to this story is that I purchased a string of low wattage LED lights which I “ran through the village right to the traffic stop”, (words from Frosty the Snowman). The village looks beautiful with its modern lighting, and I feel much safer knowing that I have minimized the risk of fire in my home.

Of course there is a moral to my story. My miniature Dickens’ Village could have caused a major, disastrous event in the actual village that I live in. Construction is a dangerous business in real life. It’s no wonder that without proper planning, the right tools, personal protective equipment, training and knowledge, tragic consequences can result.

It is Christmastime. I wish you dear readers a wonderful holiday and a time of reflection and joy with family and friends. I’ll leave you with this message from Dr. Seuss:

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of January.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post CHRISTMAS UNDER CONSTRUCTION appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.

Noah hasn’t chosen his career path yet but is very interested in auto mechanics. He is working part-time in a private garage, learning the basics of the trade. In my discussions with him I am concerned that he is possibly being used as cheap labour which rings all kinds of bells with me.

Is he being taught the correct way of doing things or is he being shown how to take shortcuts for maximum profit? What training has he been given regarding the use of equipment such as car lifts, the use of chemicals/solvents, electrical equipment, compressed air, the dangers of gas/diesel exhaust? The list goes on.

Never does something become so important as when it affects one personally. I will do my best to educate him on looking after himself.

The key word is education, regardless of the trade or profession. Learning something for the first time occurs much faster than unlearning it and relearning something new. Once something is learned incorrectly, it becomes very difficult to change a bad habit. The main, evidence-backed time frame for habit-breaking, suggests it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days. In other words, to set expectations appropriately, it can take anywhere from two months to eight months to build a new behavior, not 18 days.

That is why employer training and patience are key when it comes to training new and young employees as well as long-time, mature employees who have done the same thing over and over for years.

Health and safety training helps create a safer work environment where employees are better able to focus on tasks without worrying about their personal safety. This enhanced focus will result in higher work output and an increase in productivity and profits. An added bonus is worker satisfaction and higher morale; whereby, workers will put forth their best efforts. Both workplace parties are rewarded; workers, whose employers ensure their safety, will reward those employers with loyalty and higher performance.

I reflect on my own path when I was nineteen and entering post-secondary education. The last thing I thought about was my mortality; I was young and had my life ahead of me. Noah is now at that crossroads. From my vantage point, I want only for him to live a long, fulfilled life free from worry, pain, or any barriers to achieving that.

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of December.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post HE’S AN ADULT NOW appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.

On these walks I regularly see roofers at work. All too often the workers are young, students perhaps or those with minimal education and doing a job that is both hard and hard on the body. Naturally I wonder what kind of training they’ve been given. How often I shudder when I see them working without the personal protective equipment needed for the job. Worse still are the workers who are wearing their safety harnesses, however, attached to nothing. Usually, the ropes and lanyards are lying on the roof.

Three hazards in one:

1. The workers are wearing harnesses that hamper them but aren’t doing the job for which they are intended because they’re not attached to a lifeline.
2. The ropes and lanyards just lying on the roof are a tripping hazard.
3. Worker lack of understanding of the purpose of the PPE and frustration, maybe even anger that the equipment is more of a bother than a help.

Then I look at the vehicles that these workers have arrived in. In most cases, and this is not precise research, but an observation over years, these vehicles do not identify the roofing company. That tells me that the owners do not take pride in their company, do not want to be identified by showing their name on their vehicles and are avoiding possibly being reported to the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) by passersby.

Twice this summer I confronted onsite workers asking why they weren’t wearing their lifelines. In the first instance it was actually the owner/supervisor who told me that they would attach once the shingle packs had been offloaded the lifting device. The building being re-shingled was a three-story commercial establishment with a steep pitch. The workers had their harnesses on and were carrying the heavy shingle packs up the incline while having to step over the lifelines laying on the roof. I walked away and when I passed later in the day, not one of the workers was attached to a lifeline but hey, they had their harnesses on. Yes, I called the MLITSD.

I’m willing to bet dollars to donuts that the workers had working at heights training to satisfy Ministry requirements; however, the supervisors did not have the training to know what their personal liability was in the event of a tragic accident.

It’s all about knowing the facts, having responsible owners who value their employees and provide the right training, equipment and supervision. Those are the employers who proudly display their logos and brands on their vehicles. Those are the employers potential workers should be looking for to keep them healthy and safe.

If you’re not comfortable with it, DON’T DO IT!

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of November.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post JUST WALKING BY appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.

At the time the term PPE was foreign to me as we did not wear facemasks, safety glasses or gloves to treat patients or to clean and sterilize equipment between patients. I was touching and breathing in anything and everything that was airborne both biological and chemical. In short, these concerns weighed heavily on me during these years.

For today’s workplaces, there is the availability of excellent personal protection equipment to keep workers safe from dangerous exposures to hazards. What employers and workers must realize is that the proper PPE, correct fit and material is critical for maximum protection. 

We were also told at that time that dentistry was one of the most stressful and psychologically demanding jobs and that dentists had an above average rate of suicide. (Since that time research has shown that there is no reliable evidence to support that dentists are number one when it comes to suicides among professionals.) This in no way diminishes a dentist’s stress when treating patients who are apprehensive, in pain and fearful in the dental chair.

Unfortunately, there is no PPE available to protect workers’ mental health. Yet this is one of the most important and complex issues facing employers today. Poor mental health and stress can negatively affect employee:

• Job performance and productivity.
• Engagement with one’s work.
• Communication with coworkers.
• Physical capability and daily functioning.

Workplace health promotion programs have proven to be successful, especially when they combine mental and physical health interventions.

From personal experience, there were numerous times that workplace physical hazards and mental stress affected my health and my work negatively. Thank goodness that mental health is now being addressed to help employers and their workers. In the end this will result in more productive workplaces through improved employee communication and engagement.  

Attend the Psychologically Safe Workplace Summit

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of September.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post REUNION appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.

To satisfy my curiosity I did a little, very superficial online research as to why men grow beards. “As modern men reassess, and reconstruct their own sense of masculinity, they still can’t help but wonder: do women like beards? The beard has remained a constant sign of rugged, manly pride. Not just that, but it’s also become a key fashion accessory: big hipster bushes; designer stubble; outdoorsy-type hunter-gatherer growth; ridiculous Guinness Book of World Record-level moustaches; and intelligent professor-like beards. According to science, they can be a symbol of alpha male dominance, social status, and a means of sending sexy (or if you’re beard’s a mess, un-sexy) signals to prospective suitors.” FASHIONBEANS

More and more people are required to wear respirators to protect them at work. The critical question becomes is proper protection provided by a respirator when a worker sports a beard? The bottom line is that facial hair between the skin and face seal of the respirator will interfere with the seal of the respirator. Facial hair represents an unacceptable risk of breaking the mask’s face seal. Really, the worker needs to be clean-shaven. 

Workers have become creative when trying to integrate having a beard and wearing a protective respirator; anywhere, from putting Vaseline on the sealing surface of the respirator or the beard to using athletic bands and clips to confine the hair.

Employers and workers must adhere to the CSA Z94.4 which states that tight-fitting respirators are not permitted to be worn by employees who have facial hair that comes between the sealing surface of the facepiece and the face or that interferes with the valve function. Below is the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) poster which helps workers determine which facial hairstyles are acceptable to use with filtering facepiece respirators.

While I might find beards attractive, I understand that sporting a beard does require men to be more attentive to their grooming habits as well as the impact their facial hair can have in the workplace.

MENTOR SAFETY experts will help you ensure that your respirators are correct for the job, your workers are fitted properly for utmost protection, and that your legislative requirements are being met.

Call us @ 519-870-6930 to book your Respiratory PPE Fit Test (Qualitative)

Or fill out this form to schedule:
https://forms.office.com/r/qfgR7UeaEt

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of August.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post BEARDS appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.