(reprinted in Spring Magazine here )

Two deaths in a week. 

Or should I say two murders, in two workplaces.

One happened at the Irving Shipyard in Halifax.

The other took place on a Clearwater Seafoods boat off Mulgrave, near the Canso causeway. 

At the Shipyard,  management refuses to spill the beans.  Allnovascotia.com  says a worker went outside (for a smoke?), and something fell on him.  Then it was reported that the death had something to do with snow shovelling equipment.  Still, a  43-year-old worker is dead.  

Don’t worry: the province’s Department of Labour is on the case. 

That’s why management cleared the plant for a couple of shifts right after the “accident”.  Or maybe management feared a protest by the workers, or a wildcat strike. The latter has happened several times over the last decade.

Clearwater Seafoods death

A few days later, news came in that a fisherman on board a Clearwater Seafoods vessel died.  Of course it is February; the ocean is icy, dangerous, and mean. Did it happen in the water, or onshore?But no more information is released.

We will read or hear little in public space about how these two men died, why they died and whether or not their employers will be prosecuted under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, or the Westray Bill.  

Death at Michelin in Waterville

In May 2022, veteran columnist (and journalism professor) Stephen Kimber noted the silence that descended around the death of a worker at the Michelin Waterville plant.  All the pat responses – from the employer and from the government are in his article here.

Note the passive voice in the Chronicle Herald’s report from two years ago: 

A man was killed in an industrial accident at the Michelin Tire plant in Waterville on Wednesday night.

Then there is the customary, or standard response–

 The provincial Labour Department said it is in the early stages of its investigation and a stop-work order for a piece of machinery remains in place while the investigation is ongoing.

The Canadian Press reported the Dept of Labour’s cautious tone:  “As this is an active investigation, we cannot confirm details regarding the incident”

“The safety of our employees is our number one priority.”

corporate response, it’s pat and it’s insulting

Michelin’s public relations “boilerplate”, as Kimber calls it, released the following,

“The safety of our employees is our number one priority, and we are working to understand the circumstances around this event.”

But nothing more was announced, exposed, or even noted.  Not in 2019 and not today. 

Of this week’s  latest death at Irving Shipyard, management hastened to note “Safety is and always will be Irving Shipbuilding’s top priority.” 

Is anyone reassured by the line that the company is providing resources and support, which include “grief counselling services and granting leaves of absence to any employee who needs time away.”

Irving’s press release then took a novel turn, 

“We are committed to understanding how the accident happened, acting on any recommendations arising from the investigations, learning from this, and moving forward together,” 

But we know nothing will be exposed, little more will be released (except for the deceased man’s name and age which they have already published), and we are all expected to go home and sleep until news of the next workplace death. 

5 Years Ago: another death at Irving Shipyard

The last time a worker died on the job at Irving was five years ago in July 2019,  — according to the news he was hit by a piece of equipment, on the head while he was repairing something.  No details were released, no explanation, no serious responsibility was taken by Irving. 

Again, the police and dept of labour were “investigating the incident.”  So a workplace death is merely an ‘incident’.

The company provided “emotional support “ for workers – the live ones.  And the plant observed one minute of silence during the day shift. 

No word on where it happened at the plant, or what equipment was involved, or who else saw it.

The company provided “emotional support “ for workers – the live ones.  And the plant observed one minute of silence during the day shift. 

In 2019, Danny Cavanagh, president of the NS Federation of Labour,  has stated there are approximately 1,000 worker deaths in workplaces across Canada each year.  In the 18 years after the Westray tragedy, 429 workers in NS died on the job, according to Stephen Kimber  — an average of 23.8 workers a year.  

But the actual number is higher: In the last five years, the average number of deaths of NS workers at work stands at  27.6 per year. 

That is higher than it should be.  NS has 2.6 % of the population of Canada.  Our share of the 1,000 deaths should be 26 fatalities.  But we’re at nearly 28 per year and it is trending upward. 

April 28 – National Day of Mourning

Every Apr. 28, the ‘worthies’  in government, labour and politicos gather in the garden outside Province House in Halifax to commemorate the National Day of Mourning for dead and seriously injured workers.  As one of my union friends reminds me – the number of dead workers is going up each year, so why are we still going to these atrocious services?  In April 2023, the Minister of Service NS Colton LeBlanc stood in for the Minister of Labour. He urged the audience to pay tribute  to those who died or were seriously injured on the job in NS. “We ask all Nova Scotians to use this day as motivation to make workplaces safe today and always.”  

But the secrecy and lack of transparency is the elephant in the room.  Few companies are ever charged with criminal negligence in workers’ deaths. The Westray Bill, once touted as the answer to employers getting a near free-pass on employee deaths at the workplace, has been utilized in only 23 cases from 2004 to 2022.  Of the 23 cases, 13 corporations and 17 individuals have been charged.  Only nine were successful.  None of the successful prosecutions took place  in NS, and the sentences for those who flouted the law were quite minor.   

Deaths of NS workers at work:  average 27.6 deaths per year

2018	2019	2020	2021	2022
40	22	32	20	24

Meanwhile, in Nova Scotia, the median fine for convictions for criminal negligence causing death and workplace health and safety violations in 251 cases spanning 2007 to 2017 was only $75,000.  In NS, the maximum fine for a first offence is $250,000, and for a second offence $500,000.  About the low fines on employers, more than one critic has said, “It’s the price of doing business.” 

I’m waiting to see if the media carries any more about the Shipyard death.  With regard to the death at Clearwater, the only thing we will likely learn is the name and age of the man on the Clearwater boat. Workers’ deaths are hardly ever marked, except in the obits. 

Painting at the top: Canso Bay, Nova Scotia by Thelma Winter (source: Fine Art America)