Safety

At Meridian, we all share the goal of making our workplace a safe and healthy one, adhering to the tenets of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which provide the framework and the tools to achieve this goal.

On an ongoing basis, we review our safety program, to keep us current with changing regulations, improvements in technology and safer work procedures. Employee concerns and suggestions are always reviewed and employee participation contributes much to our program's current success.

To better monitor our standard of achievement and ensure that we design, implement, evaluate and maintain the safest and most effective environment at all times, we joined the Certificate of Recognition (COR) program. COR is a nationally recognized program, specifically designed to assist the construction industry in improving its safety culture.

To belong to the program, member companies are required to develop and implement a health and safety program that effectively promotes an injury-free workplace. To assist in this process, COR's safety professionals provide members with information on industry-accepted Best Practices that have been tested and proven to work. Thus, we have been able to develop and maintain safety management systems that enable us to achieve the highest standards of safety.

Each member company is closely monitored and audited by COR. Companies who successfully achieve and maintain certification may be eligible for a 10-15% rebate from WorkSafe Alberta and WorkSafe Saskatchewan, affiliates of the Workers Compensation Board (WCB).

Having been a member of COR since 2001, we have consistently enjoyed positive audit results and have been reaccredited in all subsequent years.

Since much of Meridian's contract work is with the petroleum industry, it is important that our people are trained in best practices that protect the health and safety of our own personnel, the industry people that we work alongside in the field, and that protect the environment that we all share.

Meridian benefits from the wide variety of training courses and programs offered by ENFORM, the training arm of the Canadian petroleum industry, recognized internationally for consistently high quality training.

ENFORM' mandate, as established by the Canadian petroleum industry, is to identify training needs, develop and offer training, provide advice and guidance and help establish standards. ENFORM is a non-profit organization governed by a board of directors comprised of senior government and industry representatives. Industry experts develop and deliver ENFORM' world-class training.

New employees participate in industry-certified training programs, including WHMIS, Defensive Driving (where applicable), First Aid, CPR, H2S Alive, Chainsaw and ATV Operation, PPE (rules pertaining to use of personal protective equipment). Training records are maintained on all employees and all take refresher courses on a regular basis. Integral to workplace safety is a strict drug and alcohol policy.

To maintain an ongoing environment of safety awareness, formal safety meetings are held monthly, our field staff meet to review safety issues weekly, and our individual crews conduct daily tailgate meetings and hazard assessments, to keep safety top of mind.

Each office has a safety officer who is a member of the firm's safety committee, which meets quarterly to review and upgrade procedures.

All of our safety officers receive instruction in hazard identification and written procedures for incident/accident reporting and investigation.

For more information on safety, please contact
Sarah Clappison at (306) 463-4266.