N.S. workplace safety ad launched to cut accidents

The province has launched a $250,000 workplace safety advertisement as Nova Scotia nears the end of a bad year foron-the-job accidents.

There have been 28 workplace fatalities (including some due to chronic disease) this year in Nova Scotia, a troubling record highlighted recently by the death of construction worker Alan Fraser in Clayton Park.

The new advertisement doesnt show any workplaces. Instead, it focuses on loved ones waiting at home.

It was produced by the Extreme Group in Halifax and struck a chord Friday with workers at Cape Cod Wood Siding in Hammonds Plains.

"I thought it was really good," said Wanda Drane. "It really got you thinking."

The good news is that companies can turn around a poor record.

Cape Cod once had too many workers getting hurt, but in recent years it has managed to cut down on accidents.

"Too big and too frequent, and weve really turned that around,"said Brad Dillon, operations manager at the siding company. "Certainly the severity has fallen right off."

The previous NDP government pledged last March to make the province the safest place to work in the country.

Nova Scotia currently sits middle of the pack in Canada, but the province has hired more inspectors and will soon assign a prosecutor to specialize in workplace accidents.