A series of public hearings across the province will kick off in Prince George next week for changes WorkSafeBC is considering to protect overnight workers from robberies and other violence.
Introduced alongside Grant's Law - a law requiring drivers to pay at gas stations before they fill up - the regulation in question requires retail companies that operate overnight to either install a barrier that would separate employees from the public, or compel employers to pay at least two workers on every overnight shift so no one is left alone.
The proposed new changes would allow those employers - mostly gas stations and convenience stores - to sidestep those requirements if they implement a so-called violence prevention program.
That program would include mandatory safety measures such as providing employees with a panic button that is monitored either by a security company or the employer, installing a time lock safe, and requiring monitored video surveillance.
North Central Labour Council president Aaron Ekman knows what he will be saying when he appears at the Prince George hearing, set for Tuesday at the Coast Inn of the North.
"I've worked in gas stations myself back when we didn't have this law and it is a scary thing when folks come in an they can hold you up or take off without paying," Ekman said in an interview just after a worker's day of mourning was held at Connaught Hill Park. "And you have to face your boss the next day and in many cases, contrary to the Employment Standards Act, they take the cost of whatever was stolen out of your paycheck."
WorkSafeBC spokeswoman Donna Freeman told the Vancouver Sun the proposed changes come after a long period of piloting the new regulations.
Freeman said that while the regulations in question - those requiring a barrier or multiple employees - were first introduced in 2008, her organization is still not enforcing them because of challenges faced by employers.
"There were service issues, there were cost issues - there's no question about that - there were construction issues," she said, pointing to problems such as ventilation issues and fire code regulations.
"There are a lot of unforeseen issues and challenges that became apparent during this pilot process," she added.
"We acknowledge it's taken a long time but we are trying to do it right."
Freeman said WorkSafeBC is not seeking to remove the barrier and multiple-worker requirements entirely, but instead is offering a third option for employers.
