2024 Program Schedule

Scroll down to see the conference program or  Download the on-site conference program here 

April 4, 2024.  Seats are available for the Pre-Conference Accident/Incident Course and the Supervisors Safety Training Course. All other Pre-Conference or Conference seats are now sold out.  

Wednesday April 17, 2024 (Pre-conference professional development courses)

 Scroll down for Thursday/Friday Conference Program. Click on a course title to jump to that course description

Thursday, April 18, 2024: Conference Day One

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Friday April 19, 2024 Conference Day Two

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Please Note: All sessions, speakers, events, times and descriptions are subject to change without notice. Pacific Safety Center Ltd reserves the right to limit quantities and to correct errors or omissions. For the latest information and updates please check the home page.

Photography & Film Footage Will Be Taken During This Event
Please be advised that a photographer and videographer will be attending the Western Conference on Safety. By entering the conference your image may be included in some shots. If you do not wish to be included be identify yourself to the photographer/videographer and so indicate your wishes to them. Otherwise your presence here will constitute your consent to being photographed and/or video’ed and your acknowledgement that such photography/film may be used for promotional, archival or media purposes.

Scent Friendly:
Scent Friendly: The Western Conference on Safety is a scent-free environment. In consideration of others, please “scent-sitive” and reduce or avoid your use of perfume or other personal scents. Your fellow conference attendees will appreciate you for it.

Session Descriptions:

Thursday April 18, 2024

7:00am:  Registration & Tradeshow Open

8:30 – 9:00am: Welcome and Opening Remarks:  (Regency Ballroom “D”, 3rd Floor)

Master of Ceremonies: Tanya Steele, R(CSO), CSS, CHSC TR Steele Company
Welcoming Remarks by: Conference Chair, Mary Moltman, Conference Chair,  Todd McDonald, Head of Prevention, WorkSafeBC  & Christl Aggus, CEO, Health & Safety Professionals Canada

9:00 – 10:00am

Keynote Presentation: Embrace Errors Don’t Hide Them by: Tim Page-Bottorff, MS, CSP, CIT
Sponsored by SWITCH BC, Safety Wellbeing, Innovation, Training & Collaboration in Healthcare
(Regency Ballroom “D”, 3rd Floor)

People are often ashamed to admit they’ve made a mistake – but human error is unavoidable. The reality of the situation is that simple mistakes can often have serious injury outcomes. Should you focus on helping people prevent making errors in the first palce or focus on managing errors with sound systems thinking? Time will demonstrate how to do both. See why individual, group and systems thinking is needed to avoid serious consequences.

Tim Page-Bottorff, CSP, CIT, Senior Safety Consultant SafeStart Tim is an inspirational certified safety professional who brings over 20 years of occupational health, safety and environmental experience. He has received the coveted ASSP Safety Professional of the Year award and currently serves as Director at-Large on their board. Tim also received the National Safety Council’s Distinguished Service to Safety Award and was a named a Top 10 Speaker by them. While a United States Marine, Tim earned the Humanitarian Service Medal and is a veteran of Operation Desert Shield/Storm where he started his safety career assisting contractors putting out oil fires and is very proud of his continued grassroots approach. Tim has been published in industry magazines and online, including in Safety Decisions, Coatings Pro Magazine, Professional Safety Magazine, the Journal of Environmental Management, and by the Water Environment Federation. He is also the author of The Core of Four: 4 Tools To Navigate Roadblocks To Great Human Performance. Participants in Tim’s training sessions benefit from his enthusiasm and unique ability to immediately put his audience at ease through humor and personal life experiences. Tim speaks all over North America and the world on occupational health and safety.

10:00 – 10:30am

Safety Tradeshow and Coffee Break

10:30 – 11:45am

Session 2A: 
Value of Venting: Encouraging Employee Feedback for Safety   Regency Ballroom “D” 3rd Floor
Our speaker discusses the essence of psychological safety and its connection to feedback and safety outcomes. Attendees will gain insights into bridging the gaps in their Safety Management System (SMS) by harnessing employee feedback.
Speaker: Tim Page-Bottorff, Senior Consultant, SafeStart, Tempe Arizona

Session 2B: 
Intro to Human & Organizational Performance (HOP):  Georgia Ballroom (2nd Floor)
An introduction to human & organizational performance (HOP) that will, in turn, create an appetite for you to learn more about HOP, and motivate you to begin, or engage in, your organization’s HOP journey.  SESSION OVERVIEW: What is Human & Organizational Performance (HOP)? 6 Key HOP Principles Why HOP? Who Should Implement HOP?  Starting Your HOP Journey.  Recommended Reading List for Continued Learning. HOP is not a program, it is an operating philosophy. A new way of looking at work, people, and the systems in which people get work done.
Speaker: Jeff Lyth, QSP Leadership Inc.

Session 2C:
Worksite Safety Inspections:  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Looking for tips on how to conduct your safety inspections? Trying to get more participation or response from the people in your workplace/ This is the session for you. Hear how to plan and conduct successful safety inspections, rate hazards and get advice on implementation. This is a great session for safety committees, supervisors or anyone responsible for safety inspections in the workplace.
Speaker: Aaron Gill, BC Employer’s Advisors Office, Vancouver, BC

Session 2D: 
Workplace Bullying & Harassment Oxford Room (3rd Floor by Elevators)
Harassment in the workplace is a serious health and safety issue. This presentation will help raise awareness of the issues related to harassment, as well as the responsibilities of various workplace parties, including workers, supervisors, employers and the JOHSC. It will include information on how to assess risks of bullying, identity mitigating strategies and protecting workers, and resources available to help prevent and minimize bullying and harassment in the workplace.
Speaker: Kira Berntson, Manager, Prevention Field Services, WorksafeBC, Kelowna BC

 11:45am – 1:15pm

Safety Tradeshow and Lunch (On Own For Lunch)

1:15 – 2:45pm

Session 3A: 
Fry No More – Resilience Skills for Stress, Uncertainty & Positive Mental Health:  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Life is full of adjustments and navigating a pandemic has been one of our greatest examples. For many people, this required working while feeling somewhat burnt-out and ending the workday feeling wired and tired. To take care of our mental health going forward, there are skills and strategies that can help us thrive now and into the future. This skill-building workshop is focused on how to gain stability after uncertainty, the importance of closing the stress loop, and will help you to build your personal toolkit for ending the burnout cycle. From the best of neuroscience, learn the practical and portable skills for those that want to better understand resilience and change small habits that have immediate positive impacts on our energy, productivity, and joy
Speaker: Shannon Gander, Life WorkWellness, Winnipeg Manitoba

Session 3B: 
Helping Employers Understand Working Alone or Working In Isolation Requirements & Regulations: Georgia Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Why is Working Alone one of the greatest risks to employee safety that continually gets ignored? Join us to learn more about the hazard most of us face everyday, and yet one that we do the least about. Most employees work alone, often for hours per day, but its one of the hazards we choose to ignore most. In this fast-paced presentation, we’ll present several scenarios that you could find yourself in, and the risks you could face. You’ll learn about BC’s and other provinces Working Alone legislation and their impacts on employers in many different industries.
Speaker: Randy Pokrant, Business Development Manager, ProTELEC Security + Safety (ProTELEC CheckMate)

Session 3C: 
Safety Culture Advancement: How to In 10 (not so) Easy Steps  Regency Ballroom (“D” 3rd Floor)
Everyone in the safety field is working towards the same objective – reducing workplace incidents and the associated costs and human suffering.  In fact, many of our companies have formally declared this intent with catch-phrases for the programming such a “Zero Harm” or the “Journey to Zero”.   The operations and safety teams at work are taxed with many jobs and tasks and now with the “zero harm” goal in mind the management and advancement of the safety culture is being added to the list.  How are we supposed to manage the safety culture along with all the other “hats” they are supposed to wear?
 In this “how-to” session the process and mechanics for advancing the safety culture in 10 (not so) easy steps will be explored.  Using a case-study approach you will learn:

• What is safety culture, how do we measure it, and how can we advance it?
• What are the linkages between safety culture and safety performance?
• How can we employee a more effective business partnering arrangement to be successful?
• What are the tools needed to achieve the necessary transformation?

If you want to meet the challenge and evolve the safety culture and build a stronger safety system, there are more than a few specific things we can do.  Join me in a presentation that is sure to entertain and educate as I discuss how to manage safety culture advancement along with “all the other hats our key employees are supposed to wear”.
Speaker: Glyn Jones, M.A.Sc., CIH, CRSP

Session 3D: 
Women’s Health & Safety In the Workplace:  Oxford Room (3rd Floor by Elevators)
All workers face health and safety issues at work – injuries, workplace hazards, diseases, and stress. Many of these issues have a gender dimension and affect women in particular ways. This presentation will give an overview of the challenges women face in the workplace and ways to take action that address ongoing inequities.

• Understand gender-based inequities in health & safety and how they impact women.
• Discuss workplace hazards that put women at risk to their physical and psychological health and safety.
• Explore actions that participants can take back to their workplaces to address these inequities.

Speaker: Laura Faccone, OH&S Program, BC Fed Health & Safety Centre

2:45 – 3:15pm

Safety Tradeshow and Coffee Break (Tradeshow Closes at 3:30pm)

3:15 – 4:30pm

Session 4A: 
Planning for Gravity:  Oxford Room (3rd Floor by Elevators)
Since the beginning of time, gravity has been a force in the universe….so maybe its time we stop forgetting about it until we are already at risk. Job planning creates opportunities to address hazards before exposing workers to the risk. If done correctly, planning will make the workflow more efficient and cost less. This interactive session will use scenarios to explore the analytical and creative thinking required to properly plan for fall protection work activities.
Speaker: Thomas Hamann, Director of Training, Saskatchewan Safety Council, Regina, Saskatchewan

Session 4B: 
WorkSafeBC’s Regulatory Change Process PLUS An Update On Its First Aid Regulation Changes:  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
This session will provide an update on the current regulatory change projects underway at WorkSafeBC and how you can get involved in the process. PLUS there will also be an overview on the first aid regulation changes that approved in April 2023 and will come into effect November 1, 2024. The purpose of these changes is to strengthen the current requirements and to harmonize the OHS regulation with CSA Z1210-17 and CSA Z1220-17 standards.
Speakers: Don Schouten, Senior Manager and Angelique Prince, Senior Prevention Advisor, WorkSafeBC

Session 4C: 
Back to Basics on Fitness for Duty: Alert Minds, Safe Operations  Regency Ballroom “D” 3rd Floor
In an ever-evolving work landscape, the well-being and performance of your employees play a pivotal role in ensuring both their safety and the overall productivity of your organization. Our upcoming speaking session, “Back to Basics on Fitness for Duty: Alert Minds, Safe Operations,” will take you through the fundamental principles of ensuring worker fitness for duty in Canada, encompassing crucial practices and regulations that every employer should be well-versed in.

 Key Topics Explored

• Understanding Worker Fitness for Duty: Gain insights into the core concept of worker fitness for duty and its significance across diverse industries.
• Navigating the Canadian Legal Landscape: Delve into the comprehensive Canadian legal framework, encompassing labour laws, occupational health and safety regulations, and human rights legislation that significantly impacts fitness for duty programs.
• Drug and Alcohol Testing – A Balanced Approach: Explore the guidelines and best practices for implementing drug and alcohol testing programs while considering privacy and human rights concerns.
• Prioritizing Mental Health and Addiction Support: Recognize the pivotal role of mental health in the workplace and learn how to create a supportive environment that ensures employee fitness for duty.
• Balancing Accommodation and Duty to Accommodate: Understand the duty to accommodate employees with disabilities while ensuring they can effectively perform their duties safely.
• Identifying and Mitigating Worksite Hazards: Learn how to identify and address workplace hazards that can impact worker fitness for duty, including psychosocial risks.
• Empowering Your Workforce through Education and Training: Grasp the importance of providing employees with the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain their fitness for duty and contribute to a safe work environment.
• Real-World Insights: Review real-world examples of best practices from various industries that have successfully ensured worker fitness for duty.
• Interactive Q&A Session: Ask questions, seek clarifications, and participate in a discussion about worker fitness for duty in Canada.

Whether you’re an employer, an HR professional, a safety officer, or anyone deeply concerned with the well-being and performance of workers in Canada, this speaking session promises to equip you with the essential knowledge and tools to confidently navigate the complex landscape of worker fitness for duty while staying compliant with Canada’s best practices. Join us on this enlightening journey to enhance workplace safety, bolster productivity, and boost employee satisfaction.
Speaker: Dan Demers, Director of Business Development, CannAmm Occupational Testing Services, North Bay, Ontario

Session 4D: 
After The Emergency:  Georgia Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Over the past 5 years throughout Western Canada a number of major disasters and circumstances have occurred including floods, fires and major layoffs. Often there is an immediate response and support, but what happens long after the emergency? How does an individual or community cope? This session explores several events. It examines the response, financial impact, infrastructure and emotional impact these types of events bring. It further looks at the types of recourses provided pre and post event and how to prepare for future events on a personal level. This session will focus on:

• Community impact and resilience
• Personal impact and resilience
• Emergency preparedness
• NGO emergency/disaster response

Speaker: Kim J. Laing, Monarch, Albera

Friday  April 19, 2024

7:00am

Registration and Safety Tradeshow Open

8:30- 9:45am

Session 6A
OH&S Education & Certification: What’s Right for You?  Oxford Room (3rd Floor by Elevators)
Whether you’re considering a career in OH&S or are a seasoned veteran, making informed decisions on formal education, ongoing professional development, and which safety certifications to invest your time, money, and efforts on can and will impact your career.  If you’re already working full-time, then it’s likely that leaving the workforce to return to school full-time may not be a viable option for you. Positioning yourself for that next career opportunity often requires better formal qualifications, such as holding an advanced education credential and recognized safety certification. This session will introduce you to the wide range of high quality, accredited OH&S Certificate, Diploma & Degree programs that are offered both on-line and in-person and to the various professional certifications and designations that will help you succeed in the career you want.
Speaker: Bruce Jackson, Occupational Health & Safety Consultant, Delta, BC.

Session 6B:
Improving Safety by (Sort Of) Eliminating Rewards:  Georgia Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Safety rewards programs don’t seem to have the impact that people expect. Sometimes they seem to treat safety as a game rather than a “core value”, sometimes they cause unintended problems, such as non-reporting of incidents. Clear causation between safety rewards and improved safety is not well established. This presentation presents evidence for setting aside traditional safety rewards and recognition programs. It suggests an alternative “no-program” approach that can be tailored to reinforce improvements, support specific initiatives, and achieve measurable results. Taking insights from applied psychology used in other behaviour modification efforts, this “no-program” program can help any organization revitalize their approach to reinforcing and encouraging improved human safety performance. Detailed implementation steps and recommendations will be available at the presentation.
Speaker:Michael Fears, BA, MA ABD PhD, CRSP

Session 6C
Bring Out the Best, Preventing the Worst: Stopping Violence & Harassment at Work  Regency Ballroom “D” 3rd Floor
Everybody remembers when they were bullied. Or maybe they were the bully. Harassment and bullying remains one of the main factors negatively impacting psychological safety at work. Harassment and violence exist on a continuum and the best place to stop it is where it starts.The presentation provides information on the world wide movement to eradicate violence and and harassment in the world of work. It provides information on why people do not intervene which silently condones the behavior harrassors and provides techniques and on how to intervene.
Speaker: John Beckett, MBA, CRSP, CHRP, ICD.D Principle, JB Consulting, Vancouver

Session 6D
Safety Factors During an Incident Response  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
When responding to an emergency or incident, your personal safety, the safety of your colleagues, and the public are paramount.  These safety considerations are not always top of mind when dealing with a fluid, urgent situation.  How do safety considerations affect an incident response? How do you prioritize strategies and tactics?
From working and collaborating with first responders, to contractors immediately arriving on-scene and convergent volunteers as the incident unfolds and develops.  This interactive session will reflect on actual incident response cases with lessons learned and how safety evolved from the initial incident management and project phases.
Speaker: Dan Chow, Lechow HSE Solutions Ltd., Port Moody, BC

 9:45 – 10:15am Coffee Break and Tradeshow

10:15 – 11:30am

Session 7A: 
Risk of Prosecution & Due Diligence: The Playing Field is Changing. Are You Ready?  Regency Ballroom “D” 3rd Floor

Increasingly, workplace incidents involving serious injuries or death are resulting in prosecutions. This can include under provincial statutes and the Criminal Code of Canada. Even when not prosecuted, incidents can result in significant administrative penalties. In either scenario, the actions of safety professionals, both before and after an incident, can come under close scrutiny. How do you demonstrate due diligence? How are courts and tribunals interpreting due diligence? What more can you do?

Graeme Hooper is a defence lawyer who represents employers and individuals facing administrative penalties, prosecutions, and statutory injunctions related to health and safety matters. He will discuss what safety professionals can expect when facing an investigation from regulators and police following an incident, how to build a case for due diligence before an incident happens, and how to understand the type of jeopardy you and others may be facing.
Speaker: Graeme A. Hooper, Counsel, MLG Law Corporation, Vancouver, BC

Session 7B: 
Rejuvenating Your Safety Committee:  Georgia Ballroom (2nd Floor)
This session is designed to inspire your committee to set aside the coffee and donuts in order to make a difference in safety. The safety committee plays a critical role in reducing accidents and increasing the bottom line – you are an important part of the team! Gain ideas, direction, motivation and tools for success in improving the effectiveness of your committee meetings and safety in the workplace.
Speaker: Tanya Steele CHSC, CSP

Session 7C: 
Human 101: Building Building Blocks to Psychological Health and Safety  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
Come and hear about WorkSafeBC Mental Health Strategies. The speaker will aim to break down key concepts into practical examples focused on prevention to help create psychologically healthy and safe workplaces.
Speakers: Steven Mah, MSc, CRSP, CFIOSH, OSH Consultant, Consultation & Education Services, WorkSafeBC

Session 7D: 
Learning Teams:  Oxford Room (3rd Floor by Elevators)
An introduction to human & organizational performance (HOP) that will, in turn, create an appetite for you to learn more about HOP, and motivate you to begin, or engage in, your organization’s HOP journey.  SESSION OVERVIEW: What is Human & Organizational Performance (HOP)? 6 Key HOP Principles Why HOP? Who Should Implement HOP?  Starting Your HOP Journey.  Recommended Reading List for Continued Learning. HOP is not a program, it is an operating philosophy. A new way of looking at work, people, and the systems in which people get work done
Speaker: Jeff Lyth QSP Leadership Inc.

11:30– 12:45pm

Safety Tradeshow and Lunch (On own for Lunch, Tradeshow Closes at 12:45pm)

12:45pm – 1:45pm Super Sessions

Super Session 8A: 
The Normalization of Deviant Behavior: Explaining the How and Why When Things Go Horribly Wrong  Regency Ballroom “D” 3rd Floor
We will explore the concept of normalizing deviant behavior through the lend of daily routines and workplace safety actions that can lead to deadly consequences. If you’ve ever said “ That’s the way things get done around here.” Or maybe you have witnessed a workplace short cut that may or may not be written in policy, then you may be normalizing behavior that is dangerous. Explore and learn how NASA paid the ultimate price – twice – and how you can avoid falling into the trap that brought down two space shuttles and has been attributed to many more serious safety failures.
Speaker: Scott Wilkinson, ECFO, BPE, PCP, Deputy Chief, Fire Rescue Operations & Training, Fire Paramedic Service, City of Winnipeg

Super Session 8B: 
From Handcuffs to Handshakes:  Lessons From Over 30 Years of Handling Humans  Plaza Ballroom (2nd Floor)
After being posted in West London fresh out of the police academy, Phil Eastwood was told to “keep the peace”. It was like being asked to stand in front of a fully charged fire hose with an umbrella and told to stay dry…you quickly learn that its hard but not impossible. Come on a roller coaster ride from the harsh reality of violent riots to the joy of a Royal Wedding, all the time learning the difference between honey and vinegar in communication. You will LAUGH and LEARN, but more than anything your will leave this session with a better sense of your ability to effectively build relationships and communicate with people; respectfully and with clarity. Join us for a journey with an articulate and engaging speaker that you won’t forget!
Speaker: Phil Eastwood, Fiore Group Training Inc., North Vancouver BC

1:45 – 2:00pm Room Change

2:00 – 3:00pm Closing Keynote: Out of My Mind by Big Daddy Tass   Regency Ballroom “D” (3rd Floor)

Often described as “one of the most talented comics in the business”, Tazz has been delighting crowds at fundraisers, corporate events, festivals and on television for almost twenty five years. Known as the Bi-Polar Buddha, Tazz is equal part comedian, and motivational speaker, who likes to enlighten, educate and inspire audiences. With his newest endeavour “Stand Up Against Stigma”, Tazz shares why he believes that it is time to educate, embrace and empower mental illness so that we can all stand tall and give stigma a bad name!

3:00pm – Conference Concludes

_______________________________________________________________________________

Pre- Conference Courses:

Wednesday April 17, 2024

8:30am – 4:30

Course PC-1
Fundamentals for Joint Health and Safety Committees Course 
This course is ideal for new safety committee members needing to comply with WorkSafeBC’s Safety Committee Member training regulations as well as existing members looking to upgrade their safety knowledge and skills. If your organization is setting up its first safety committee or looking to makes its existing committee more effective, this one day course is just what you need.

Topics include: applying the process of safety inspections and accident investigations, participating in constructive committee meetings, helping your committee work together and much more.

Fees:
Early Bird: (Up to March 15/24) $265
Regular (After March 15/24)       $295.00
GST extra

Course PC-2 (One Day)
Accident/Incident Investigation Course
Great course for safety committee members, supervisors or anyone who is required to conduct and/or review accidents and incidents in the workplace. It will help you to effectively investigate accidents with the objective of reducing or preventing future accidents. This is one of our most popular courses.
Fees:
Early Bird: (Up to March 15/24) $295.00
Regular (After March 15/24)       $395.00
GST extra

Course PC-3 (One Day)
 Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment Course
A fundamental concept in managing occupational health and safety (and also in many WorkSafeBC’s regulations) is the recognition, assessment and control of hazards. The process is commonly referred to as Hazard Identification or Risk Assessment. But how do you determine what is a hazard and how do you find hidden hazards before someone gets hurt? This course will assist you in recognizing and rating the severity of workplace hazards and explore common strategies for controlling them. A great course for supervisors, managers and safety committee members.
Fees:
Early Bird: (Up to March 15/24) $295.00
Regular (After March 15/24)       $345.00
GST extra

Course PC-4
Supervisors Safety Training Course 
Supervisors are arguably the most influential people in preventing workplace incidents and injuries. But only if they understand their key role and have the specific skills needed to follow through on that understanding. If they don’t or worse, have nevere been taught how to supervisor for safety as part of the job, then accidents and injuries nearly always follow. This jam-packed one day course guides new or experienced supervisors through the fundamentals they need to ensure safety on the job.
Fees:
Early Bird: (Up to March 15/24) $295.00
Regular (After March 15/24)       $395.00
GST Extra