Construction health and safety advisory group named for Ontario

Ontario Ministry of Labour has established a Construction Health and Safety Advisory Group to work with the Minister of Labour’s Parliamentary Assistant Mike Colle and the province’s Chief Prevention Officer George Gritziotis to provide strategic advice on how to best implement the Construction Action Plan.

The advisory group includes an equal number of labour and employer representatives from various sub-sectors of the construction industry.

They include four labour representatives from across the spectrum of construction: Joe Dowdall, International Union of Operating Engineers;  James Hogarth, Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario; Cosmo Mannella, LiUNA Ontario Provincial District Council; and Mike Yorke, Carpenters’ District Council of Ontario. The four employer representatives from large construction and home building include: Mike Wieninger, PCL Constructors Inc.; Steve Riddell, Ellis Don Corporation; Tom McLaughlin, Thomasfield Homes Ltd.; and Dave McLean, Mattamy Homes.

“The Advisory Group will be a tremendous asset for the Ministry,” stated Council of Ontario Construction Associations President Ian Cunningham. “It’s comprised of highly competent individuals who know what will and won’t work in the field,“ Cunningham added.

COCA believes the Advisory Group will perform and extremely important role providing the Ministry with practical advice related to the implementation of new programs and practices designed to improve the health and safety performance of the province’s construction industry.