Brad Herczeg of Alstom Power Canada, center, accepts a safety award during the tripartite banquet. Joining in the award ceremony is, l. to r., Kent Oliver, IR-CSO; David Galvin, President and CEO, Boilermaker Contractors’ Association of Canada; Ed Power, IVP-Eastern Canada (retired); and Jason McInnis, National Director of Health and Safety, Canada.
Conference sets attendance record
THE EASTERN CANADA Tripartite held its 10th anniversary conference August 19-21 at the Algonquin Resort in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and set a new attendance record.
One hundred and twenty-one delegates attended the event, including 21 from the owner community, 61 from contractor firms and 39 from the Boilermakers union. Another 34 persons participated as speakers and guests, and more than 100 family members attended.
International Vice President - Eastern Canada (retired) Ed Power chaired the conference; IR-CSO Kent Oliver (Director - Tripartite Services, Eastern Canada) coordinated the meeting.
Bill Wilkerson, executive chairman of Mental Health International, led a workshop titled “Designing, Building, Sustaining the New Workplace of Mental Health and Safety,” and later gave a keynote speech to the full conference body. Other main speakers included Kelly Lendsay, president and CEO of the Aboriginal Human Resources Council; Gina O’Rourke-McKay, project manager for the New Brunswick Mentor Apprenticeship Program; Bob Collins, economist for BuildForce Canada; Dr. George Jergeas, professor at the University of Calgary; Gregory Matte, national executive director for Helmets to Hardhats Canada; and Jamie McMillan, founder of J♀urneyman women in the skilled trades initiative. Two members of Parliament also addressed the conference: John Williamson, representing New Brunswick Southwest, and Rodney Weston, representing Saint John, New Brunswick.
The event featured an industry panel discussion of the Energy East Pipeline, a proposed project that would transport 1.1 million gallons of crude oil a day 4,600 kilometers (about 2,900 miles) from Alberta to refineries in eastern Canada. Dr. Shelley Rinehart, a professor at the University of New Brunswick, Saint John College, moderated the discussion. Panel members included Bob Eadie, project director for Energy East Pipeline, Ltd., TransCanada Pipelines, Ltd., and David Simon, manager for construction and turnaround, Irving Oil Refinery.
Caucus breakouts also were conducted and were followed by reports to the full conference.
At a dinner held on the final evening of the conference, the tripartite presented awards for safety performance and commitment. The awards went to Nova Scotia Power (owner); Alstom Power Canada (contractor); Ronald Brown, Local 73 (Halifax, Nova Scotia); Don Barrie, Local 128 (Toronto); and Sherry Moore Hickey, Local 203 (St. John’s, Newfoundland).
The 2015 Eastern Canada Tripartite conference is tentatively scheduled at Niagara on the Lake, Ontario. Additional details were not available at press time.
