HAMILTON, ON - July 5, 2007 - The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) unveiled its program for the national forum being held in Vancouver, British Columbia, September 17-18, 2007. CCOHS has assembled an authoritative, prestigious line-up of experts from Canada and Australia to present on topics related to the theme "Emerging Health and Safety Issues in Changing Workplaces: A Canadian Discussion".
Dr. Michael Quinlan, a Fellow of Safety Institute of Australia and professor in the School of Organisation and Management at the University of New South Wales, will travel half way around the world to share his views and discuss the effects of increasingly precarious employment in his presentation on the evolving workplace. Dr. Quinlan has focused on the effects of institutional organization, regulation and employment status on óccupational health and safety. In recent years he has published widely on the effects of precarious employment on occupational health and safety.
Professor Katherine Lippel, a professor of law at the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Law's civic law section, will address gaps in protection, accountability and responsibility for health and safety in the changing workplace. Prof. Lippel will explore whether workers with precarious employment fall under the same workplace safety standards as permanent employees and whether the legislation fully protects them. Prof. Lippel specialises in legal issues relating to occupational health and safety and workers' compensation and is the author of several articles and books in the field.
Dr. Catherine M. Burns, an Associate Professor in Systems Design Engineering at the University of Waterloo, will tackle the issue of emerging technologies and processes that bring new risks to workers. How can we keep up with technology and control new workplace hazards? Dr. Burns directs the Advanced Interface Design Lab at Waterloo where her research examines user interface design, visualization and cognitive work analysis. Her work has been applied to military systems, healthcare, power plant control, and oil and gas refining. She has authored over 100 publications.
The question of why organizations need to focus on employee well-being will be covered in a presentation by Dr. Linda Duxbury, one of Canada's leading workplace health researchers. Dr. Duxbury is a Professor at the Carleton University School of Business and the Director of Research at the Centre for Research and Education on Women and Work. She has focused much of her research in the last decade on work and family balance and has significantly advanced the practices and attitudes toward work-life balance in the public and private sectors.
Forum '07 is expected to provide an opportunity for subject experts, workers, employers and governments to share their knowledge and better understand how these unique challenges impact the health, safety and well being of workers.
Information about Forum '07 is available on the website: www.ccohs.ca/events/forum07/about.html.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Eleanor Westwood, Manager of Communications
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety
(905) 572-2981, Ext. 4408 Email: eleanorw@ccohs.ca
Please visit www.ccohs-cchst.ca
About CCOHS
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), formed in 1978, is a Canadian federal government agency based in Hamilton, Ontario. CCOHS provides Canadians with unbiased, relevant information, training and advice that supports responsible decision-making and promotes safe and healthy workplaces. CCOHS makes a wide range of occupational health and safety information readily available, in language that is appropriate for all users, from the general public to the health and safety professional. Internationally, the Centre is renowned as an innovative, authoritative occupational health and safety resource. CCOHS partners and collaborates with agencies and organizations from Canada and around the world to improve the quality and quantity of resources and programs, as well as expand the breadth of usage of occupational health information to many different segments of society.
