October 21, 2019
- Adoption of the agenda
The agenda was adopted. - List of SWOHS members to be posted online
The Committee approved the final list of SWOHS members to be posted online. It was noted that there is a vacant position on the Employer Side which will be filled in the near future.
Sub-Committee on Competent Persons
The Committee Advisor reminded the members that the sub-committee on competent persons will resume meeting regularly, with their first meeting scheduled for January 24, 2018. The purpose of the sub-committee is to develop resources to provide to departments in order to assist them in navigating through the process of appointing a competent person to carry out a workplace violence investigation. It was agreed that SWOHS members could invite subject matter experts from both sides to attend the meeting as participants. - Question(s) from the OHS Community
A question was submitted to the Committee inquiring as to whether or not “experience in psychological injuries should be considered criteria for a competent person”.
The Committee’s initial thought was that knowledge and awareness of psychological hazards could be relevant depending on situation but may not be a requirement. The Committee agreed that the sub-committee on competent persons could review this question and provide a response during the course of their work.
A question was raised regarding the difference between mental injury and psychological injury and what terms/definitions should the Public Service be using. It was explained that mental injury can be diagnosed and is part of the DSM, whereas psychological injury is less severe and may not impair. In order to better understand and decide what terms the Public Service should be using, D. St-Jean offered to bring in literature to be discussed at the next meeting. - Developing a presentation about SWOHS
Following the release of SWOHS communiqués/minutes to OHS Policy and Committee Co-Chairs, the Committee has received a number of invitations to present their role and responsibilities to various Departments/Committees. Given the number of requests, it was suggested that the Committee could develop a presentation which could be presented via webcast and invite those among the community who would be interested. In developing this presentation, it was agreed that the Committee would begin by developing a deck. D. St-Jean recalls a deck being made in the past and offered to gather some information to begin development. In the meantime, the Committee will look at updating the NJC website to provide more thorough information on the Committee’s role and responsibilities. - Guarding Minds at Work Survey (GM@W)
In line with the JEEC/SWOHS sub-committee’s Report and Recommendations which were presented at the meeting on September 27, 2017, the Committee invited Dr. Merv Gilbert and Dr. Dan Bilsker, the researchers behind GM@W, to the meeting via teleconference to discuss the Committee’s revised survey.
While the researchers were supportive of the Committee’s work, they cautioned that by changing the survey, the validity and benefits of comparability to the normative data would no longer be preserved and the survey could no longer be considered GM@W. The researchers also advised that there is a newer version currently being developed with updated normative data.
The researchers indicated that they have worked with many public and private organizations to customize individual survey needs and in doing so, they have been able to preserve the methodological benefits which are linked to their applied research, uphold validity and enable the proper comparisons to the normative data. The researchers further explained that in their customized surveys they have been able to add additional factors (e.g. moral distress, psychological self-care) while preserving the link with the original 13 and maintaining the ability to compare it to the normative data. As a neutral third party, customization and administration through the researchers would have many benefits.
The Committee recognized these benefit; however, it was indicated that comparisons to the normative data, although insightful, would not be as beneficial given that the population of the Public Service is very different than the population used to gather that normative data. Some members of the Committee felt that the revised survey could serve as a truth statement evaluation and that Departments could administer this tool to assess their organization and identify problem areas. In carrying out the survey, the Government would have the added benefit of comparing the results to other data sources, such as the Public Service Employee Surveys.
The researchers were asked if the new GM@W survey included a diversity lens and if not, would the Committee’s addition of a 14th factor titled “Diversity and Inclusion” negate the intent of the survey. It was indicated that the new survey does not incorporate a diversity lens. Regarding the Committee’s revised survey, the researchers indicated that as long as the original questions were still present, the fundamentals of the survey should have been preserved. The Committee confirmed that the survey remains primarily intact and the sub-committee just added language to incorporate diversity and inclusion considerations as well as substituting terms which were more familiar in Public Service.
The conversation closed with a brief recap of the researchers concerns and the Committee thanked the speakers for their time and feedback.
Following that discussion, the Committee spent a brief moment reminding members what the purpose of this exercise was: Departments are struggling to assess and identify physical hazards and now they are being asked to identify psychological hazard as well. As the Service-Wide Committee on Occupational Health and Safety, the Committee needs to provide Departments with the tools they need to fulfill their obligations and conduct this type of hazard assessment.
A debate ensued as to what the next steps could be in terms of rolling out the survey. While Committee members expressed varying opinions and concerns about validation, it was ultimately decided that another meeting would need to be convened to discuss the options moving forward. - Asbestos (standing item)
No update to report. - Legionella (standing item)
No update to report. - Round table
N/A - Next Meeting
March 15, 2018
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 12:10 p.m.