BCNU Mental Health Awareness Month

BC nurses regularly encounter harassment and violence on the job. Too often these incidents cause psychological and/or physical injuries that result in time away from work.

In fact, for BCNU members, harassment and violence are a leading cause of injury claims that result in time off work. Last year, 36 percent of members polled said they experience physical violence in the workplace at least once a month, and more than half believe their employers are not prioritizing nurses’ occupational health and safety.

More action is needed now. BC’s health-care system requires robust provincial regulations to build physical and psychological safety in the workplace.

WorkSafeBC’s Harassment and Violence Regulation

BCNU is currently engaged in WorkSafeBC’s law and policy consultation process. We’re working with WorkSafeBC and other parties to revamp Part 4 of the Harassment and Violence Regulation (General Conditions, Harassment and Violence). We are pleased that proposed amendments to the regulation include several BCNU recommendations, most notably:

• The inclusion of harassment in the province’s occupational health and safety regulations, which will add rigor to related prevention programs, incident reporting, investigations, corrective actions and communication.
• An expanded definition of harassment and violence that includes actions targeting a person’s individual characteristics: “for certainty, harassment and violence includes harassment and violence that targets or is based on a person’s Indigenous identity, race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, religion, marital status, family status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or age.”
• Clear direction requiring employers to consult workers whenever harassment and violence prevention programs are reviewed or developed, and that joint occupational health and safety committees are involved in this process.

These proposed amendments will make a real difference in nurses’ working lives. But we need to go further, and more needs to be done to effectively address the physical and psychological hazards of workplace harassment and violence. That’s why BCNU is recommending that WorkSafeBC develop a harassment and violence guideline that includes, but is not limited to:

• Describing what is and what is not considered harassment and violence
• Providing information on how to eliminate internal and external hazards of harassment and violence
• Detailing how to conduct an effective risk assessment for internal harassment and violence
• Stating the minimum mental health supports and resources that an employer should make available to workers

YOUR STORY MATTERS

Have you been told that harassment and violence is just “part of the job”? Have you experienced harassment or violence in your workplace? How did this impact you? Sharing this experience has the potential to effect real change. Workers’ stories can help identify events, actions, behaviours that contributed to violent events.

TAKE ACTION

Support our recommendations and share your story.

WorkSafeBC is also accepting submissions from the public. That means you can send a message that supports BCNU’s call for the development of a harassment and violence guideline.

You also have the option of telling them more about your experience with harassment and violence in your workplace. Your experience could result in further amendments to the regulation and a WorkSafeBC guideline on harassment and violence prevention.

Submissions Closed