This project seeks to identify workplace policies and practices associated with lower rates of work-related injury and disease among construction workers in Ontario. It spawned from earlier research in partnership with the Ontario Construction Secretariat (OCS) where Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) data was linked to comprehensive lists of union-certified firms provided by the OCS and which found that union certified firms in the construction sector have 20% fewer lost-time, musculoskeletal and critical injury workers’ compensation claims, compared to non-union firms. This research is needed because of the high rates of injury, death, and disability that are sustained by construction workers in Ontario and elsewhere, as well as the overwhelmingly high prevalence of small businesses and hazards in this industry.
•To understand the union and employer drivers of injuries and illnesses.
•To describe how union organizations and union certified firms contribute to lower lost time injuries and illnesses, and critical injures and musculoskeletal injuries.
The results of this research project will be relevant to the construction sector, unions, the MOL, the WSIB, policymakers, and other prevention partners.