Presented by Hassan Yussuff on Thursday, 28 April 2011

Sisters and Brothers - I am honoured to join you here today in Ottawa to observe the National Day of Mourning. Workers all across Canada in large and small communities and workplaces are marking this day in many ways as we have done for the past 27 years.

Our objective 27 years ago was to bring attention to the deaths and injuries suffered by Canadian workers and change our country's commitment to protect workers from workplaces injuries and deaths.

However, since the first National Day of Mourning was observed 27 years ago, workplace deaths have remained very much the same.

I have to ask all Canadian workers a question which makes us sick to our stomachs – “Is Today The Day You Die At Work?”

Workers leaving for their job each day asking themselves that terrible question is totally unacceptable – and it is sadly necessary.

Each week in Canada, 20 workers do not come home to their families, their loved ones, their home, and their friends.

Each year, nearly 1,000 Canadian workers die because of their jobs.

They will die as a result of entirely preventable causes – or because of fatal diseases like cancer and asbestosis caused by exposure to carcinogens in their workplace.

That exposure could also have been prevented – but was not.

And that is why we gather together each April 28th for the past 27 years – to grieve for those who lost their lives and to fight to end this nightmare of workplace deaths.

Unfortunately, it happened again only 20 days ago.

One construction worker died and three more were injured when a brick wall collapsed and fell onto a scaffold where they were working to repair a building in Montreal.

Passers-by rushed to help dig them out of the rubble by hand – but for one worker it was too late.

And it happened again just 17 days ago in Toronto when a worker was pulled into an industrial pasta machine, and died of his injuries.

We need much greater prevention measures to keep workers safe on the job.

We also urgently need vigorous enforcement of current legislation that will punish those responsible for violating health and safety rules when workers are killed or injured on the job.

That message has particular importance this election year as federal, and many provincial and municipal politicians will ask for workers’ votes.

The Canadian Labour Congress, our affiliates, our Federations of Labour and our Labour Councils have a simple request:

Lay charges under the criminal code provisions that would send those employers found guilty of criminal negligence causing the deaths of workers to jail, to pay for their actions.

Working together, the labour movement persuaded the federal government to pass The Westray Act - Bill C-45 – named after the mine where 26 workers tragically died in a methane explosion.

But despite Bill C-45 allowing for the criminal prosecution of those believed to be responsible – including corporations - for the deaths of workers on the job – little has happened.

Last year, police in Toronto and Sault Ste. Marie laid charges against employers under the criminal code for negligence causing death in two separate fatal construction accidents.

Nova Scotia and Manitoba have recently appointed special prosecutors for vigorous enforcement of health and safety regulations.

But to date, only in Quebec, have employers been prosecuted and found guilty of being responsible for workers’ deaths on the job.

It’s not enough and it’s not acceptable that for 27 years the carnage of workers being killed on the job continues, that another 1,000 families face the horrible news that their loved one will never come home again.

This year, let’s tell politicians, at every level, that we want them to get “tough on crime” – the crime of letting employers get away with murder when a worker is killed on the job through negligence.

Let’s demand far more action by government to do everything possible to stop needless workplace deaths and injuries.

Police officers and health and safety inspectors investigate these accidents and have the authority to conclude what charges could be laid.

Provincial and territorial Crown prosecutors are responsible for taking charges to the courts.

So we need governments to make it a priority to charge and prosecute those employers causing death and serious injury through negligence – that’s our message.

Let’s make it completely unnecessary for any worker to have to ask themselves “Is Today The Day You Die At Work?”

Thank you sisters and brothers.