UPDATED April
25, 2007
Press Release In Advance
of the
Federation's Sixth Annual Provincial Day of
Mourning Ceremony
Pictured: President of the PEI Federation of Labour, Carl Pursey as he speaks at the Federation's Sixth Annual Provincial Day of Mourning Ceremony.
Charlottetown, PE....On April 28th the P.E.I. Federation of Labour
will hold its Sixth Annual Provincial Day of Mourning Ceremony for workers who have been
killed or injured on the job at 1:00 p.m. at Province House. A reception will
follow hosted by the Province. Everyone is invited to join with the Federation and the
friends of families of Island workers who have died on the job for this ceremony. We will come
together to honor their memory, mourn their loss, and re-dedicate ourselves to work
harder to
improve workplace safety.
This years theme is “Safe and Healthy Workplaces for All
Workers.” This is not just another theme put forth because it is expected of the labour movement.
We as a movement couldn’t be more serious. Already in 2007 two
Islanders have paid the ultimate price of losing their lives while on the job. It is with this
sad news that our commitment to a safer workplace and enforcement of Occupational Health
and Safety laws be renewed vigoursly. whether a worker belongs to a union or not,
it is incumbent
upon every worker to look out for themselves and their peers so that no
one suffers an injury on the job or lose their lives. Such responsibility does not lie
solely with the workers either. It is a combined effort on the part of provincial
government, employers
and unions to ensure the safety of our workforce. Our ultimate goal is
to never have another workplace fatality ever again.
Having said that, improving workplace safety must remain our number one
priority. The labour movement cannot do this alone. Provincial government plays a
crucial role through the Workers Compensation Board to make sure employers and
workers know that creating an unsafe environment will not be tolerated on PEI. As a
labour movement we denounce those who place profit before workers health and safety, and
as such want to see strict enforcement of the Occupational Health and Safety
Legislation as well as the penalties contained therein.
The Federation of Labour also recognizes there have been more deaths
than those reported because some have not been recognized as having roots in the
workplace; be it illness or occupational disease. We gladly take up the fight to have
these illnesses and
diseases recognized by the Workers Compensation Board so that the next
generation of Island workers will not suffer.
“As was stated earlier our ultimate goal is to ensure that a
day comes when no Islanders will ever have to go through the loss of a loved one through a
workplace accident again and we fully believe that if those involved in ensuring workplace
safety commit strongly enough to this goal, that day will come, “stated Carl Pursey,
President of the PEI Federation of Labour.”
In the end, as April 28th draws near, our thoughts and prayers are
with the families of those who have lost their lives on the job. We mourn their loss. We
will also continue to fight for the living so that these tragedies never occur again.
PRESS
RELEASE MAIN
ANY
CONSTRUCTIVE COMMENTS, SUGGESTIONS,
OR ERRORS CLICK ON THE MAILBOX.
