Hamilton – Warren (Smokey) Thomas, President of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), will hold a press conference outside Hamilton’s EMS Operations Centre to address a major health and safety crisis. At least nine dispatchers have suffered severe electrical shocks to their heads and bodies since October 2015.
Date: Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: 489 Victoria Street North, Hamilton
“What the employer dismisses as ‘acoustic events’ has sent three dispatchers to hospital with trauma to their heads and bodies,” said Thomas. “Noises, no matter how loud, don’t cause wounds.
“This workplace is severely compromised. Dispatchers are terrified they’ll be the next victim of an electrical jolt. The employer, the ministries of Health and Long-Term Care and Labour, and the Electrical Safety Authority, should thoroughly investigate and identify the problem to ensure our dispatchers’ safety.”
For more information: Warren (Smokey) Thomas, 613-329-1931