It is the second compiled by WorkSafe Saskatchewan regarding workplace safety. The first was laid out for 2019-2022.
“It’s a matter of recognizing that the workers need support and the support can exist,” said Don Morgan, minister of labour relations and workplace safety, at the announcement.
In the new strategy, healthcare, transportation and construction will be key industries of focus as those select three have the highest injury rates, said Morgan.
Targets include reducing the number of serious injuries and fatalities in Saskatchewan workplaces and increasing the open dialogue with employers, employees and labour groups.
“This is a continuation of a lot of the things that we’re working on, in the same way,” Morgan said.
“We want to focus on education, training and making workers aware of what their rights are, as well as making sure that we’re doing everything we need to do on the enforcement and prosecution side,” he said,
Around 2,400 employees are seriously injured while on the job every year in Saskatchewan. Total injuries declined in 2020, attributed in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Morgan said in the wake of the first introduction of a safety strategy, the province’s injury rate fell to 4.56 per cent from 4.9 per cent.
