This week, four workers were killed in separate incidents while at work. The lives of many families have been shattered. Colleagues and communities now have to deal with irreparable losses.

These are pointless and senseless workplace fatalities. It’s the law to keep all workers safe in the Province of Ontario. Through this statement I’m calling on the workplace parties to take on this serious responsibility to keep all workers safe. Ministry of Labour inspectors will aggressively be using a zero-tolerance approach to reckless violations and hazards.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act and its regulations are the law. Everyone in the workplace – senior executives, owners/operators, directors, managers, supervisors, workers – is expected to obey the act and its regulations. It’s the law. There are no excuses. There will be consequences.

All of us have a responsibility for workforce safety. Preventing injuries and fatalities has to be top of mind every workday. Not one of us wants to be part of that next statistic. All of us must take ownership of our responsibilities on the job. You cannot say: “It’s not my problem, it’s not part of my job.” Health and safety is your job. It is a part of everybody’s job.