All employers in British Columbia have various obligations and duties toward employees. The Workers' Compensation Act requires employers to protect the health and safety of employees. An employer who fails to comply with the required standards could be held accountable if an employee should suffer a preventable workplace injury.

Workers in all industries in British Columbia are exposed to hazards in the workplace. While any workplace injury that involves fractured bones or open wounds is easy to recognize as being work-related, some occupational illnesses might be questioned.

The hazards posed by puncture wounds caused by needlesticks and other sharp objects are prevalent in the health care industry. However, the threat of this type of workplace injury can also be found in Vancouver facilities where workers deal with solid waste and recovery of recycling material.

The continued dangers posed by asbestos may alarm British Columbia residents, homeowners and workers. Since 2000, the numbers of work-related fatalities from diseases caused by asbestos have exceeded the numbers of any other type of workplace injury in the province.

Some business owners in British Columbia may not be pleased that just about every employer must register for and pay insurance premiums to protect injured workers. In BC, even property owners who build their own residences or those who hire casual workers as regular gardeners, domestic workers, nannies and cleaners must register with WorkSafe BC.

No business owner in British Columbia wishes to be held responsible for harm to employees. While accidents are known to happen when least expected, employers are required to take reasonable steps to prevent workplace injuries.

On April 28th, 2018, Canadians took a moment to pause and pay tribute to victims and survivors of workplace injuries. The National Day Of Mourning, or Workers’ Mourning Day, recognizes and honours the thousands of individuals and families who have had their lives irrevocably changed as a result of an occupational disease or workplace accident.

Firefighters in British Columbia and other provinces and territories face multiple safety hazards. Instances of workplace injury are prevalent because they work in dangerous situations in which they are often exposed to extreme conditions that include high temperatures.

Construction company owners in British Columbia who disregard the safety and health of employees in favour of maximizing profits may not realize that injured workers will adversely affect the bottom line. Instead, proactive steps can avoid instances of workplace injury while non-compliance fines under the occupational health and safety requirements laws can be prevented.

Construction work sites are known hazardous areas at which employers are expected to protect the health and safety of employees. However, construction site accidents continue to occur in British Columbia, and safety authorities are looking at ways in which to change this.

Workers in the film industry -- actors and actresses, dancers, stunt drivers, set workers and others -- face multiple safety risks while working on productions. However, the Occupational Health and Safety laws are not always clear on the status of workers.

In British Columbia, employers in all industries must comply with requirements to protect the health and safety of their employees. If the inspectors of WorkSafeBC investigate a workplace injury and find that safety violations caused it, the business will be fined.

Workers are entitled to a safe workplace environment. Employers must comply with prescribed regulations regarding workplace health and safety, and employees may have a right to refuse work in unsafe conditions.

For most people in British Columbia, going to the hospital is something they do to get well. However, for many workers in the health care industry, hospitals are the very places that put them at risk for a workplace injury.

No worker is immune to the risk of suffering an injury while on the job. However, the potential sources for a workplace injury are not always readily apparent. In an effort to combat a common but seldom considered hazard, the government of British Columbia has changed the rules covering restaurant servers' uniforms.

British Columbia is a province in which natural resources abound, and as a result, there are many people employed in the resource sectors, including mining, fishing and forestry. These fields are considered high-risk areas for a workplace injury.

All areas of employment carry an element of risk to workers' health. Those risks vary by profession, and some types of workplace injury may be specific to a particular job. Firefighters are exposed to numerous hazards while on the job, although some are less obvious than others.

When a person gets hurt on the job, the injury becomes apparent immediately. This is typical of a laceration or impact injury. However, sometimes a workplace injury does not become evident at the moment it occurs, or the severity of the injury may not be obvious.

On average, people in British Columbia are living longer than they ever have before. One of the offshoots of this trend is an aging workforce. One expert suggests that a corresponding increase in workplace injury frequency and recovery time is already evident. 

A recent report by the Toronto-based Institute for Work and Health reveals that those who make return-to-work decisions about injured employees may be more interested in containing their costs than protecting the well-being of workers.