Mr. Speaker, I rise today to take part in the debate on the hon. member's motion calling on the government to lower the flag to half mast on April 28 each year to commemorate the national day of mourning for those killed in the workplace. I say to the hon. member that the Government of Canada very much respects his views on this matter and fully acknowledges that workplace deaths and injuries are a senseless tragedy. I personally congratulate the hon. member for bringing this matter to the attention of the House.
Having said that, the government shows considerable compassion and concern for the health and safety of Canadian workers. There is considerable evidence to that effect. Our federal occupational safety and health regulations and those of our provincial and territorial colleagues are among some of the very best in the world.
Because of those regulations, Canada is highly regarded in the international community. Other nations have drawn on our expertise to develop their own safety and health regimes. We can attribute a good deal of this success to our approach, which is based upon the internal responsibility system. It is a regulatory framework similar to provisions contained in the International Labour Organization convention 155 which deals with OSH regulations.
This system recognizes that an employer has the right to manage his or her enterprise in an effective manner. At the same the employer has the responsibility to protect the safety and health of his or her workers. The internal responsibility system also recognizes three fundamental rights of workers. They are the right to participate, the right to know, and the right to refuse dangerous work. These longstanding concepts are the foundation upon which the occupational safety and health system is built.
It is not only the employers who have the responsibilities. Under the internal responsibility system Canadian employees have a responsibility. The responsibility is to follow safe work practices, to use personal protective equipment when required, and to report unsafe working conditions to their employers.
At the same time, the foundation upon which the system functions can be seen in the roles of federal, provincial and territorial authorities. It is their responsibility to help ensure compliance, to monitor and to audit how both parties fulfil their responsibilities and to address matters of non-compliance. In other words our occupational safety and health system has three partners: employers, employees and government. All three have rights as well as legal responsibilities to ensure a safe and healthy work environment.
Here is one fine example of what can be achieved when partners with a vested interest work together. Hon. members are likely familiar with the workplace hazardous materials information system, more commonly known as WHMIS. WHMIS is the result of collaboration between federal, provincial and territorial governments. It is the result of these governments consulting over several years with industry and labour and what a result it is.
I mentioned a moment ago that we are world leaders in occupational health and safety. WHMIS is the most advanced information system of its kind in the world. WHMIS has enabled us to establish a uniform identification system for dangerous ingredients in the workplace. It ensures that hazardous materials are adequately labelled by suppliers who must use standard criteria. That is not all. Through the communications component of WHMIS, workers learn how to handle hazardous materials safely and employers are given the information they need to train their workers in the proper use of hazardous materials.
For employees to participate effectively in developing clean and safe work environments, they must recognize what is going on, understand changes that occur and grasp a plethora of information. WHMIS plays an important role in achieving these objectives. It is an information system Canadians should be very proud of.
Nevertheless, just because we have developed a dependable occupational safety and health system, that does not mean we are resting on our laurels. Not at all. In its own way the government is fully supporting the noble intent of this worthy motion brought forward by the hon. member from The Battlefords-Meadow Lake.
We are currently reviewing the Canada Labour Code including part II which contains the federal occupational safety and health requirements. This comprehensive review began in 1993. A tripartite committee comprised of knowledgeable individuals from labour, management and government is considering more than 200 proposed changes brought forward by representatives from these three groups.
The overall aim of the review is to modernize the code and ensure its continuing efficiency. The context in which the review has been carried out reflects the changing role of government, that is, less intervention and more emphasis on the responsibility of employers and employees to manage safety and health measures in the workplace.
Again, the theme of productive partnerships runs through the review. Proposed changes will facilitate greater co-operation among partners in the workplace to resolve occupational safety and health issues. I am pleased to inform hon. members that the review is proceeding on schedule.
In summing up, I would like to outline for my hon. colleagues the strategic directions in which the federal government is now embarking with regard to occupational safety and health.
We are striving for greater co-operation among federal, provincial and territorial governments with regard to occupational safety and health.
On compliance, we are strengthening the internal responsibility system by promoting greater employer responsibility for occupational safety and health and ensuring that workers and their representatives are able to become more actively involved in protecting their safety and health.
On information, sound decisions can only be based on a clear understanding of the issues. We are supporting effective ways of providing OSH information, education and training to employers and employees. We are promoting greater awareness of occupational safety and health across the country.
It is important to monitor effectiveness so we are developing performance indicators to assess the outcome of implementing occupational safety and health standards nationwide. We are actively participating in improving the standardized framework to collect, to code and to classify information on workplace injuries and illnesses.
On partnerships, productive collaboration is the key to sound results. To that end we are striving to maximize the effective involvement of everyone concerned with occupational safety and health decision making. That includes the most efficient use of limited resources and valuable expertise.
I empathize completely with the tragedy of workers who have been killed or injured on the job. I commend the hon. member for bringing safety and health concerns to the attention of the House and the general public. I can think of no issue that rates greater concern than the safety and health of Canadian workers.
The federal government is committed to preventing occupational accidents and injuries and to strengthening internal responsibility within workplaces. I assure the hon. member that the federal government will continue to move in that direction.