Made Safe NL created with contributions from Workplace NL

A new organization to address safety concerns in the provincial manufacturing and fish-processing sectors was formally launched on Tuesday.

Made Safe NL is a new safety sector council created through a $1.5-million commitment from Workplace NL that was first announced little over a year ago. The new organization will function as an offshoot of the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters Newfoundland and Labrador Division (CME-NL).

According to a news release issued Tuesday, the organization will get employers, workers and stakeholders to collaborate on finding ways to improve health and safety outcomes and enhance safety culture in the work environment.

Some sobering data from 2019 suggests there is work to be done on that front. According to the release, the manufacturing and fish-processing sectors had lost-time incident rates due to workplace injury or illness of 2.9 and 2.8 per 100 workers respectively that year, well above the provincial average of 1.6.