The SHSA’s Lisa Chavady, Safety Advisor, talks hot topics with Jim Bence, SHHA President and CEO.
Teamwork and partnerships are a great asset to any organization. When people come together to work towards a common goal, great things can be achieved.
How has the SHHA changed over the last 3 years? Our organization has undergone significant strategic changes with safety and WCB becoming one of our key drivers.
How have the SHHA & SHSA gotten closer in this time? The SHHA and the SHSA have always had a great relationship and this has certainly grown much stronger over the last few years. As the voice of industry, it is our responsibility to act in our member’s best interest, effectively lobby on their behalf, and probably most importantly, connect our members with organizations that will help them operate in a safest and most profitable manner possible. The connection between our members and the SHSA has grown as operators take advantage of the great programs and education that the SHSA has to offer.
Now I’d like to move on to a discussion about some items that have come forward in the last little while. Firstly, the drop in premiums we are seeing from the WCB.
How has this been achieved? Great question and very easy to answer. The SHSA has worked tirelessly with our industry and the combined efforts of the two have resulted in historic and unprecedented reductions injuries and costs!
How have you been involved in this process? I feel my job is to help connect the dots. If I am able to bring employers that need help with injuries and claims together with the SHSA, I am not only fulfilling the mandate of my organization, I am truly helping employers and employees work safer.
How does safety effect an organization? Safety has tremendous impact on ALL aspects of an organization. Good employees are hard enough to find already and if people are sitting home hurt, you need to find a replacement. This can have a huge impact on the moral of the worker and fellow employees. If someone gets hurt, there can be significant costs attached to the claim that will hit employers bottom line. You can end up paying huge surcharges on your premiums if claims run long, are fraudulent and left unmanaged by WCB. These are all things that the SHHA has helped educate countless employers on how to deal with these often complex and expensive issues.
Something that we have also seen come to light in the last month is broader coverage for workers suffering from PTSD. How do you see this affecting our industry? This has the potential to have a serious and significant impact on employers and associated claim costs. To their credit the SHSA has already started preparing for this by having their Advisors trained in Mental Health First Aid by the Canadian Health Commission of Canada. We need to be proactive and prepared for this issue and the possible impact on employers.
Thank you again Jim, your insight on these topics has been most helpful.
Be sure to watch both of our websites for more information and updates on legislation changes.
If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact the SHHA or SHSA today!
It is clear to see that working together can have great benefits not only to organizations who have a partnership, but to their members and those associated with the organizations. One such example is shown in the work the SHSA has done with Temple Gardens Hotel & Spa:
“Working with SHSA has been a very positive experience for our hotel – our specific needs were easily met through conversation with the Safety Advisors who then, in a timely matter, were able to provide the onsite training and safety evaluation we decided on. They were able to offer us advice and suggestions to work towards bettering our safety in the workplace. The professionalism and diligence of SHSA’s staff and management are second to none and we look forward to continuing our working relationship in the future.”
Kacey Payne, HR Coordinator
Temple Gardens Hotel & Spa
Moose Jaw, SK
You can catch the full magazine article here, SHHA Magazine Winter 2016!
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