Action to improve crane safety in Canada

A new risk reduction strategy to improve crane safety in British Columbia, Canada, has been launched by WorkSafeBC.

The deaths of five workers in Kelowna after a tower crane collapse in 2021, plus other crane incidents, including another fatality, prompted action by the WorkSafeBC agency.

In March it assembled a group of 130 crane industry stakeholders to identify and address crane safety issues. The group included tower crane operators, rental companies, labour representatives, main contractors, employers, and the BC Association for Crane Safety.

What resulted is a series of recommendations for reducing risk and improving the safety of crane operations. “Following a comprehensive review of crane safety and, informed by stakeholder input and feedback, we’ve developed a risk-reduction strategy with recommendations aimed at further improving tower crane safety in BC,” said Todd McDonald, WorkSafeBC head of Prevention Services.

What are the main recommendations?

• Review the existing crane operator certification programme to ensure it supports safe work.
• Explore how to improve the training and skills of supervisors, riggers and workers involved in the assembly, operation, disassembly or repositioning of cranes.
• Review options for employers responsible for the assembly, operation, disassembly or repositioning of tower cranes, including registration and licensing.
• Increase the staffing and capacity of WorkSafeBC’s specialized crane inspection team.
• Develop new regulations to address the frequency of tower crane inspections.
• Review and update the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, including regulations related to cranes and rigging, to ensure they meet the needs of increasingly complex worksites.
• Ensure that the BC Association for Crane Safety is equipped to service and support workers and employers in the sector.

The recommendations will be discussed with the BC Ministry of Labour, SkilledTradesBC and the industry stakeholders from the group, including the BC Association for Crane Safety.

This will feed into the changes already underway as part of WorkSafeBC’s ongoing crane safety initiative which “aims to identify and eliminate unsafe work practices and equipment hazards that have the potential to cause death, serious injury and-or catastrophic equipment failure,” WorkSafeBC said.

Earlier in 2024, the new Notice of Project-Tower Cranes regulation gained approval from the WorkSafeBC Board of Directors. It takes effect in October. Employers responsible for tower crane activity at a workplace in British Columbia must make sure WorkSafeBC has a written notice of project (NOP) at least two weeks before the crane activity starts. That NOP will mean WorkSafeBCs know who is qualified to perform the work, plus when, where, and how it will be done.

WorkSafeBC has a remit to prevent workplace injury, illness and death, supporting injured workers with compensation and rehabilitation. The organisation was established by provincial legislation. It is an agency mandated to oversee a no-fault insurance system for the workplace. Working with employers it seeks to promote prevention of workplace injury, illness and disease. It also helps with rehabilitation and the return to work.

If it works perhaps it could be adopted more widely.