Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

Sisters and Brothers:

April 28, 2008 will mark the 24^th anniversary of the National Day of Mourning for workers killed and injured on the job. The National Day of Mourning was started in 1984 as an initiative of the Canadian Labour movement and this day of reflection is now established around the world.

• More Day of Mourning information, including a list of events in BC
• Read more Heath & Safety related posts

In 1984, according to the official figures listed by the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC), 744 workers were listed as having died from workplace injuries. But instead of seeing and improvement is this tragic situation, the past two decades has actually seen an increase in the number of workplace fatalities. In 2006, the last year that the AWCBC has released statistics for, 976 workers were killed on the job due to workplace injuries.

However, we know that these statistics are grossly underestimated and that the real number of deaths resulting from occupational illness and disease, and other workerplace factors are never included in these official statistics, as it is extremely difficult to prove that deaths that are caused by occupational disease, such as cancer, are caused by exposure to hazards in the workplace.

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