Like so many others, Mike Chislett watched in horror at the devastation that unfolded March 11, following an unprecedented earthquake and tsunami in Japan. As the resort concierge at Parksville, BC’s Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort and Conference Centre, Chislett was prompted to take a hard look at the resort’s own emergency preparedness plans. And when he realized more current information might be available, he contacted WorkSafeBC right away to look for more resources.
His quick thinking earned kudos from his employer. “We’re pleased with Mike’s initiative,” says Paul Drummond, Tigh-Na-Mara’s general manager. “He’s enthusiastic and energetic. We take pride in caring about our employees and our guests, and Mike exemplifies that.”
Drummond says the resort has been improving its emergency readiness plan ever since.
Employees welcome emergency planning process
One improvement the resort made to its earthquake preparedness plan was to move its evacuation areas away from parking lots surrounded by large trees toward more open areas — safer locales if the earth began to tremble.
As a resort, Drummond says, Tigh-Na-Mara must not only consider its nearly 300 employees but also, in high season, up to 800 guests staying in rooms spread across the resort’s nine hectares. As such, the resort already had many good practices in place, such as radio communication between night employees to ensure that — whatever the hazard —people are able to stay in contact.
“It was mostly details we took into account,” says Therese Lowe, co-chair of Tigh-Na-Mara’s health and safety committee. “We reviewed our basic policy for fire evacuation and earthquakes, made sure our employees understood it, checked government links to make sure we were up to date, and linked up with the City of Parksville’s emergency evacuation procedures.”
When they decided to upgrade the procedures, the resort found its employees receptive.
“It was so close to the Japan disaster that there was no negativity,” Lowe says. “Everyone was glad to get more information, and to have localized information. We even gave our employees preparedness tips they could use at home.”
Although the changes were relatively minor, just going through the process heightened awareness among existing staff — and reinforced the need to review these emergency procedures regularly, particularly among newer employees. To ensure these procedures work, for instance, the resort considers the orientation of its newly hired staff a priority. On the first day of employment, new staff must review fire-exit locations, emergency procedures, locations of first aid stations, and emergency phone numbers.
A few weeks later, this same group of new employees has a resort-wide orientation session to refresh these lessons, along with monthly department meetings to tackle safety topics.
In some ways, Drummond says, the resort is better prepared than many businesses because it already has food and water on site, generators, guest rooms with emergency lights for power outages, and teams of employees trained in what to do and whom to contact for any problem — from a windstorm power-cut to a full-blown disaster.
Include all employees in the plan
As Tigh-Na-Mara learned through its own planning exercises, it’s important for small business to consider all employees in preparing for an emergency. In addition to the fact that new employees are often overlooked, increasing evidence shows some employers fail to consider staff with disabilities — especially disabilities that aren’t readily apparent.
Karen Martin, emergency preparedness project coordinator for the BC Coalition of People with Disabilities (BCCPD), conducted a study on emergency preparedness for people with disabilities through the support of WorkSafeBC’s Research Secretariat.
“We found that general workplace emergency plans do not address the needs of people with disabilities and put people at risk,” she says, noting that many disabilities are not always as evident as, say, wheelchairs. “Some degree of visual impairment can make it hard for people to read posted emergency procedures, or for employees who are deaf or hard of hearing and don’t hear alarms in time.
“In BC, there is a growing number of people with disabilities in the workplace,” Martin says, noting that 55 per cent of all employable people with disabilities in BC are employed here — some 130,000 people. And with the population aging and people working longer, more employees have hidden disabilities — some degree of vision, hearing, or mobility impairment.
“We need to start thinking in terms of a workplace that is safe for everybody,” Martin says. “After Japan, we’re being asked to do a lot of presentations. People are concerned, as they should be.”
The BCCPD trains businesses, government departments and community organizations to create emergency plans that include people with disabilities and seniors. Free booklets, checklists, and more are available at www.bccpd.bc.ca/projects/emergency.htm. Businesses or organizations interested in applying to take Strategic Inclusive Training for Emergencies (SITE) can vsit www.bccpd.bc.ca/site.htm to set up training for their group.
Readiness is a legal requirement
Regardless of whether emergency planning is at the top of everyone’s list, all employers need to be thinking about it, says Terri Holizki, WorkSafeBC small business manager for industry and labour services. “Employers are required to have an emergency plan in place.”
And while earthquakes might be on everyone’s minds at the moment, Holizki points out that emergency planning also deals with less dramatic events. “The kinds of scenarios employers need to plan for are the same for small or large businesses: fire, chemical spills, and power outages.” Under the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, Part 4, employers must do as follows:
- Conduct a risk assessment
- Develop and implement written procedures and assign a worker to coordinate their implementation
- Designate and mark emergency exit routes
- At least once a year, hold emergency drills
Although smaller businesses might face the same risks as larger ones, they also face barriers to emergency planning, Holizki says. They might think that an emergency just won’t happen to them, or be hindered by a lack of resources.
“When smaller businesses have conducted drills, we’ve found some didn’t want to leave their businesses behind. This is their livelihood that’s kept them and their families going for years, and they find it hard to just leave,” she says. “But an emergency can happen at any time and people need to be ready to protect themselves, as well as their facility and their inventory.”
Holizki’s small business team members worked together to make preparedness easier for small businesses. The result is Act Now, an online printable guide that includes a sample, step-by-step emergency response plan.
Written by Lynn Welburn. This article appeared in the July/August 2011 issue of WorkSafe Magazine and is reprinted with the permission of WorkSafe Magazine, WorkSafeBC.
