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The Construction Safety Association of BC (CSABC) has announced an additional fi nancial incentive for Sector 72 companies that achieve or maintain the Certifi cate of Recognition (COR). Effective immediately, all COR companies will be reimbursed $150 plus GST for every supervisor who takes a CSABC COR supervisor course.

“The CSABC Board of directors and the industry overall believe that supervisors play a critical role in the success of a health and safety management program, and that all supervisors will benefi t from the training,” said CSABC Project Coordinator Cathy Lange. “By providing this additional fi nancial incentive we hope that more companies will take advantage and send all their supervisors through the program.”

In other CSABC and COR-related news, WorkSafe BC has decided to postpone implementation of the mandatory external audit requirement until 2008. That means that Sector 72 companies with more than 20 employees will not need to complete an external audit this year in order to achieve COR and become eligible for a 5% rebate on their WorkSafe BC base assessment.

“WorkSafe made this decision in the interests of ensuring our smooth transition from pilot program to full, certifying partner in the Partners in Injury and Disability Prevention program,” said Lange. The COR program was launched as a pilot initiative in 2004. Since then, over 130 companies have achieved COR.

WorkSafe’s partners in injury program offers different levels of certifi cate programs to employers who go beyond legal requirements of the Workers’ Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation in terms of implementing health and safety and disability management programs. As employers earn COR such as the one offered by CSABC, they become eligible for the 5% and other
WorkSafeBC rebates.

Lange adds that WorkSafe, in consultation with industry organizations such as CSABC, is continuing with the development of two new incentive programs that will provide up to 15% in rebates to companies who add a return to work component to their safety program and show continuous improvement in health and safety. “These additional incentives are aimed at further encouraging employers to develop cultures of safety on their worksites, and, equally important, are designed to assist the timely return to work of those who are injured on the job,” Lange said. The additional incentive programs are expected to be launched sometime in 2007.

Meanwhile, CSABC has adopted the National Safety Audit Standard as its audit tool for COR certifi cation purposes (in order to achieve COR, one employee from each company must complete the audit training). The national tool is recognized by the Canadian Confederation of Construction Safety Associations, and is considered important for those companies who wish to bid on jobs in other provinces. For companies doing business in more than one province, a common audit tool will streamline the audit process.

CSABC is now offering courses on the new audit tool; this training is not required for those who have attended previous auditor training.