To promote healthy workplace practices more broadly within the business and labour communities, the CLBC is hosting a series of regional seminars on workplace health and wellness1. The purpose of the seminars is to share the results of case studies on innovative workplace health practices, in order to demonstrate the value of these practices in enhancing employee health and workplace performance, and in reducing health-related costs. The overall goal is to encourage management, unions and employees to initiate and/or maintain workplace health practices.
The first of three regional seminars - Workplace Health Works! - was held in Vancouver, B.C. on March 24-25, 20032. The seminar, which consisted of an evening plus a full-day session, drew a total of 105 participants from a variety of sectors and constituencies. About one-half were representatives of business establishments, while 20% were representing labour groups, and a further 20% were from government organizations (not including the Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) of B.C. staff). The remaining participants were comprised of CLBC and WCB staff.
The evening session of the Vancouver seminar began with opening remarks from Angie Schira, Secretary-Treasurer of the B.C. Federation of Labour. This was followed by the Plenary Address, in which François Lamontagne (CLBC) provided an overview of labour and management views on workplace health. The presentation, based on the results of CLBC’s Viewpoints 2002 Survey of business and labour leaders, included information about the health, safety and wellness features most commonly found in Canadian workplaces, the perceptions of managers and labour leaders about changes in workplace health, and the factors that contribute to improvement or deterioration in workplace health. The presentation also set the stage for the second day of the seminar by giving an overview of the CLBC’s 12 case studies.
The full-day session of the Vancouver seminar was opened by Roberta Ellis, Vice- President, Prevention Division, Workers’ Compensation Board of B.C. The main part of the day’s agenda featured presentations by representatives of both management and unions/employees from three British Columbia workplaces which were participants in CLBC’s initial case studies. The featured presentations were from:
1 Funding support for these seminars is provided through the Population Health Fund (Health Canada) and the Labour Market Partnerships Program (HRDC). Return
2 Additional funding support for the Vancouver Seminar was received from Workers’ Compensation Board of B.C. The WCB of B.C. was also instrumental in providing assistance with the organization of the seminar and roundtable discussions. Return