Canada Recognizes the International Day of Mourning on April 28

Every year since 1991, on April 28 we recognize workers who died as a result of a workplace injury and illness, through a wide range of events supported through unions, employers and governments.

As a result of the current COVID-19 pandemic and the restriction on public events, we are recognizing and paying tribute to workers who died and/or became disabled through work related injuries/illnesses, virtually through video and online messages.

Beyond the Statistics

The most recent statistics from the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC) tell us that in 2018, 1,027 workplace fatalities were recorded in Canada, an increase of 76 from the previous year. Among these deaths were 27 young workers aged 15-24.

Add to these fatalities the 264,438 accepted claims (an increase from 251,508 the previous year) for lost time due to a work-related injury or disease, including 33,058 from workers aged 15-24, and the fact that these statistics only include what is reported and accepted by the workers compensation boards, there is no doubt that the total number of workers impacted is even greater.

And it’s not just these numbers on which we need to reflect. With each worker tragedy there are loved ones, family members, friends and co-workers who are directly affected, left behind, and deeply impacted – their lives also forever changed. (Source: Canadian Center for Occupational Health & Safety)

Every day, people die as a result of occupational accidents or work-related diseases – more than 2.78 million deaths per year or in excess of 7,600/day. Additionally, there are some 374 million non-fatal work-related injuries each year, resulting in more than 4 days of absences from work. ( Source: ILO )

The latest statistics on workplace fatalities and injuries from the AWCBC paints a very grim picture and should be concerning to all Canadians. In addition to the 1,027 fatalities, there were more than 260,000 injured on the job. Both these numbers are significant increases from the previous year. We also know that these numbers don’t reflect the reality of workplace death as there are many diseases that workers suffer from that are all too often not categorized as occupational in nature though they likely are.

“An often overlooked and tragic fact is that of those thousands of injured workers, about ten percent of them, will suffer a permanent condition of some sort. People with disabilities in Canada face many barriers with regard to employment and this just adds to a physical injury with mental health concerns and often social isolation.

Canadian workers deserve better and the United Steelworkers have made it a priority since our inception to fight for safer and healthier workplaces. We have fought for a place in society for those who have suffered life altering disabilities. On this Day of Mourning we reiterate our commitment to Mourn for the Dead and Fight for the Living.”

Ken Neumann, National Director, United Steelworkers
Labour Co-Chair, PCU-WHS/NIDMAR

For further information please visit:

Occupational Health and Safety News 2020

CCOHS

Deadline of the call for abstracts: Monday April 20th !

This is a last chance to submit your abstract! So far we’ve received many abstracts but we are hoping for more! Don’t miss the deadline of April 20th. If you hesitate to share an abstract with us now, it will be too late. Please send it to us now!

All information about the call for abstracts and submission is available following this link: https://www.ifdm2020.org/call-for-abstracts

Please see the attached flyer for more information

Belgium Government Demonstrates Disability Management Leadership

Belgium’s Social Security Organization, INAMI/RIZIV, is advancing strategies, programs and practices designed to maintain successful and productive employment for individuals who acquire a mental or physical health impairment and who are at risk of losing their jobs and who often never re-enter the labour market again. The shift has been towards a pro-active job retention strategy versus waiting for re-integration measures attempted once individuals enter the social security system.

In 2014 INAMI/RIZIV signed a 5-year license agreement which provides access to the entire NIDMAR continuing education framework as well as the ability to offer the Certified Disability Management Professional (CDMP) and Certified Return to Work Coordinator (CRTWC) examinations across Belgium.

Following a formal review of the RTW/DM intervention improvements that individuals trained through the education program and subsequent professional certification were able to achieve in Belgium – the improvements being consistent with the outcomes achieved in other jurisdictions – Belgium has extended the license agreements for education and professional certification license arrangements to 2025.  More Information

NIDMAR Celebrates 25 Years

An event was held in Vancouver on December 2 to recognize and celebrate NIDMAR’s 25 Years of developing and implementing professional and program standards in the field of Disability Management and Return to Work.

Speaking at the event were the Honourable Shane Simpson, BC’s Minister for Social Development and Poverty Reduction; MP for Courtenay-Alberni, Gord Johns; international guests from Germany, Belgium and the United Kingdom; and founding and current NIDMAR Co-Chairs. A presentation was also made on the Enhanced Disability Management Program (EDMP) re the joint collaboration between the unions and the employers across the health care sector in BC.

For further information regarding the event and the various initiatives that NIDMAR has successfully undertaken over the last 25 years, please see details in the bulletin attached – highlights are:

– Establishment of the Pacific Coast University for Workplace Health Sciences (PCU-WHS), a statutory, not-for-profit, post secondary, degree granting University focused in the areas of health and safety, health promotion, disability management and return to work, and rehabilitation.

– Development, validation, and promotion of Occupational Standards in Disability Management, and the associated professional certification examinations, now adopted in 64 countries and referenced in the ISSA global best practice guidelines on Return to Work and Reintegration

– Developed, tested and validated a three-level consensus-based Disability Management / Return to Work program assessment protocol – the basis for which was used to create the EDMP in the health care sector in BC.

– Creation of the biennial international congress – the International Forum on Disability Management – NIDMAR hosted the first IFDM in 2002, and brought it back to Vancouver in 2018 hosted by PCU-WHS following successful IFDMs hosted around the world in the intervening years.

To view the Gallery of Photos, click on the following link: Gallery of Photos

For further information, please contact:
Email: nidmar@nidmar.ca

More Information

CDMP and CRTWC Certificates Awarded in Canada

Two events were recently held in Canada – one in British Columbia and one in Ontario – for the presentation of CDMP and CRTWC certificates, and 10-year pins to those who have maintained their professional designations for 10 years.

The Honourable Harry Bains, BC’s Minister of Labour, attended the event in Burnaby, BC and said of the event, “It was wonderful to be a part of a celebration for graduates of the Certified Disability Management Professional (CDMP) certificate program at the BC Nurses’ Union. BC’s professional network to support injured workers to return to work just got a little bigger.”

A second event was held in Toronto during the Conference hosted by the Canadian Society of Professionals in Disability Management (CSPDM) when the CDMP and CRTWC certificates and 10-Year Pins were presented by IDMSC Co-Chair Prof. Dr. Joachim Breuer and Chair of the CSPDM Evie DoCouto who is Vice President, Return-to-Work Program at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board of Ontario.

Prof. Dr. Joachim Breuer said of the event, “There’s no successful inclusion of sick or injured people without a return to work philosophy; there’s no successful return to work without highly qualified experts who guide the process; and there would be no experts of such kind without the worldwide accepted certification for disability managers and return to work coordinators from NIDMAR.”

Please see the attached Communiqué for quotes from the main speakers at the events along with photos. More Information

Scottish Government Hosts Event Awarding of Certificates

An Awards event was held September 23 at the Dunfermline Carnegie Conference Centre in the Kingdom of Fife, Scotland, to recognise 24 individuals who successfully completed the NIDMAR training program and the 29 individuals who successfully passed the CDMP examination, gaining their CDMP designation. For further details, please click on the following link to read the IDMSC Communiqué.

Scottish Government Funds Training for 300 CDMPs Over Five Years

The Scottish Government has invested in the provision of a five-year program aimed at training up to 300 individuals to become Certified Disability Management Professionals (CDMPs) to serve the country’s public and private sector groups dedicated to maintaining meaningful employment for workers with long term health conditions, injuries or disabilities.

Attached please find the IDMSC Communiqué with further details.

Revitalizing injured workers via certification

In an article written by Datuk Dr. Norma Mansor, emeritus professor and director, Social Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Malaya, she identifies that employment injuries and work related illnesses fall under the jurisdiction of the Social Security Organization (SOCSO), which adopted a case management strategy whereby every injured worker is assigned a case manager who will facilitate the intervention using a bio-psychosocial and multidisciplinary approach called the Return to Work program.

To provide quality services to its members, SOCSO’s Return to Work case managers and employees dealing with Return to Work program-related matters are required to have professional certification in disability management practice: Certified Disability Management Professional (CDMP) and Certified Return to Work Coordinator (CRTWC).

SOCSO appointed the Social Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Malaya to create and become the Test Agency to manage and administer the CDMP and CRTWC examinations.

Following translation and ensuring Malaysian legislative content, the CDMP examination was offered in 2017 and 2018 to SOCSO employees and will be open to all in 2019.

Dr. Mansor identifies that the structured intervention of case manager has contributed to the success of the program and the resulting impact on the nation’s economy, but more importantly, it is the impact on the individuals who are now able to get back into employment. She writes, “They are now able to earn and become an active member of society which contributes to their self-worth and dignity.”

To read the full article, please click on the following link:
Malaysia Article by Dr Norma Mansor May 2019

Agreement signed in Malaysia on disability management with focus on return to work

SOCSO Malaysia, the federal Social Security Organization, has signed an Agreement with the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP), Malaysia’s most advanced container terminal – a leading corporate organization, on disability management through the Return to Work and Back Injury Protection and Rehabilitation program.

Dato’ Sri Dr. Mohammed Azman Bin Dato’ Aziz Mohammed, SOCSO Chief Executive, said “This will bring positive impact to PTP employees, as well as be a catalyst for other organizations to take the same path in making disability management a cultural practice and part of human resources.”

PTP CEO Marco Neelsen said, “In PTP, we actively promote occupational safety policies, conduct safety and health campaigns to reduce accidents, as well as implement an employee wellness program to prevent mishaps to our workers and contractors.”

To read the full article, please click on the following link:
Malaysia Article re SOCSO Signing May 2019