BC Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair speaks to labour activists and members of the community who gathered to mourn workers who have been killed or injured as a result of workplace accidents, illness and occupational disease at the Day of Mourning ceremonies held Saturday, April 28, 2007, at Bear Creek Park in Surrey, BC. |
Surrey, BC - Members of British Columbia's labour movement joined with their union brothers and sisters, members of the community and local politicians in honouring those workers whose lives have been taken as a result of workplace accident, injury or disease and calling on the provincial government to improve safety regulations and enforcement. More than 150 mourners gathered at Bear Creek Park in Surrey BC on Saturday, April 28, 2007, to mourn the loss of workers killed on the job through workplace accidents or as a result of occupational disease. Organized by the BC Federation of Labour, the New Westminster & District Labour Council and the Vancouver & District Labour Council, the ceremonies got underway with a procession of labour activists led to the speaking platform by a lone piper. Sister Terry Van Steinburg, President of the New Westminster & District Labour Council and Sister Carolyn Chalifoux, Secretary-Treasurer, chaired the ceremonies that featured speakers Gurchuran Dhillon of the Abbotsford Community Services, Charan Gill of the Canadian Farmworkers Union and Harsharan Bal, husband of a deceased farmworker. BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair gave a passionate speech about the state of worker safety in British Columbia and demanded appropriate safety rules be established to protect workers and more importantly, enforcement of safety rules. 160 workers lost their lives in 2006 as a result of workplace accident, injury or occupational disease. This year's event had a special focus on farmworkers as a result of the tragedy in Abbotsford in March of this year that killed three farmworkers on their way to work. Day of Mourning events were held across British Columbia, organized by local labour councils and unions.   Joining with members of the local labour community at the Surrey ceremony were family members of recently deceased workers, including Doug Depatie and his family who represented Grant Depatie, the young worker who was tragically killed in a gas and dash incident in 2005. Family members of the three women who were killed in March of this year in a motor vehicle accident while on their way to work as farmworkers were also in attendance. Local politicians at the ceremony included Bob Bose, Acting Mayor of Surrey; Harry Bains, NDP MLA Surrey-Newton; NDP MLA Sue Hammell, Surrey-Green Timbers; NDP MLA Jagrup Brar, Surrey-Panorama Ridge; NDP MLA Raj Chouhan, Burnaby-Edmonds; NDP MP Penny Priddy, Surrey North; NDP MP Dawn Black, New Westminster-Coquitlam; NDP MP Peter Julian, Burnaby-New Westminster and NDP MP Bill Siksay, Burnaby Douglas.
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