Over the last couple of months we’ve heard about some tragic deaths. A man testing air quality at a fire station died from the air he was breathing. A crew sandblasting lead-filled paint off the walls was using not sand, but ground up walnut shells. The man who died was allergic to nuts. You could not see that one coming.
Then, we heard about the man who died, trapped under a paving machine. Again, no one could have predicted that.
But, there are deaths we do know are coming, about 3,000 of them every year, from using tobacco. And yet, the province is still not doing all it can to protect all workers from second-hand smoke.
The Lung Association is concerned about thousands of workers in hookah bars, and group living facilities, and motel and hotel housekeepers, still in danger long after the smoking ban supposedly came into effect.
Smoke Free Alberta is also concerned about the coming legal cannabis and what they will do to the quality of air some employees are exposed to.
Labor Minister Christina Gray – what’s happening? Hello?
Bob Layton is the news manager of the Corus Edmonton group of radio stations and a commentator for Global News.