April 28th is the National Day of Mourning for workers killed or injured on the job.
Manitoba Finance Minister Scott Fielding says “The Day of Mourning gives us all a chance to honour the Manitobans who did not return home safely from work last year and the families impacted by workplace injury and illness.
In 2020, 13 Manitobans died because of occupational illness and work-related incidents. Others were hurt seriously enough to cause permanent injury or require time away from their jobs. Of course, those we lost were much more than workers. They were also our family members, friends, colleagues and neighbours.
Today, the flags of provincial buildings have been lowered and we will observe a minute of silence during question period to honour and remember the Manitobans who were injured or killed in the workplace this past year. Manitobans are encouraged to pause at 11 a.m. for a moment of silence.
During the COVID-19 pandemic and always, today is also a time to recommit ourselves to safety and health in the workplace and the prevention of further injury, illness and death.
As we look to the future of our province, I invite and encourage all of us to continue to work together to support safe and healthy workplaces. We all share in the vision of making our province stronger, and that requires safe and healthy workplaces for Manitobans.
I encourage all Manitobans to take a moment of reflection today, to be mindful of safety and health on the job, and continue to work together to ensure workers go home safely to their families at the end of each day.”
