KIMBERLEY—The Campbell government must modernize its safety standards to keep British Columbia workers safe, New Democrat Labour critic Chuck Puchmayr said today.

“The B.C. Liberal government has the wrong priorities when it comes to worker safety,” said Puchmayr. “Instead of improving safety standards, they slashed safety regulations, which resulted in eroded protection and enforcement for workers. We have also seen a number of incidents where safety standards were not properly followed, and a worker paid with their life.

“Whether its farmworkers, forest workers or mine workers, British Columbians deserve a government that will keep them safe when they’re on the job. The Campbell government must work to modernize our safety standards not eliminate them to help keep workers safe,” said Puchmayr.

Puchmayr said that evidence heard yesterday at the coroner’s inquest into the deaths of Doug Erickson, Bob Newcombe, Kim Weitzel and Shawn Currier at Sullivan mine underscores the need for such modernization.

“With respect to confined entry, had Sullivan mine’s safety codes been harmonized with those of WorkSafeBC, it would have changed the responding party’s assessment of the scene and its potential hazards,” said Puchmayr. “There would have been clear signage to let first responders know they were entering a confined space. And that small change could have saved lives.

“B.C. workers cannot wait for the Campbell government to admit that their reckless deregulation is putting workers at risk,” said Puchmayr. “They must take action now to ensure that critical safety measures are in place to protect B.C. workers on the job. And I hope they start by implementing interim measures to address the safety concerns highlighted by testimony at the coroner’s inquest.”