Last year, the territory logged 1,936 workplace injuries.
That’s far too many.
Which makes Pelly Construction’s accomplishment all the more remarkable.
The company does much of the heavy lifting at the Minto Mine near Pelly Crossing.
It’s been building roads and excavating the site.
It’s dangerous work, and last year the firm didn’t log a single workplace injury.
Not one.
The company credits its decision to work with its employees as key to its success.
It put them in charge of their own safety, met with them at the end of every shift and identified safety concerns.
Then, it dealt with them.
If equipment was needed to ensure safety, the company bought it.
There are currently several forces at play at Pelly - employees thinking about safety, and voicing their needs to management, and management listening and, most importantly, acting.
It wasn’t a case of management enacting rules. It was people on the ground, who knew how the operation worked, identifying problems and solutions. Management simply ensured it happened.
The company also expressed zero tolerance for people who broke the rules. Caught with your seatbelt undone, you could lose your job.
Sounds harsh, but it worked.
In a territory with one of the worst workplace injury records in the country, a construction company working in one of the more dangerous fields - mining - kept its 60 employees safe for an entire year.
That’s a heck of an accomplishment.
Pelly Construction has not only demonstrated that workers can be protected on the job, but also how to do it.
In a territory where five people are injured on the job every day, it’s a goal all employers should be shooting for.