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Did You Know?
Drunk drivers in single vehicle crashes - On average 73 per cent of all fatal collisions involving a drinking driver in Saskatchewan are single vehicle crashes. In collisions involving a drinking driver where someone was injured, almost 60 per cent are single vehicle crashes. There are passengers in over half of these alcohol-related single-vehicle collisions and over 60 per cent occurred at night when the drinking driver is on the way home. If these motorists travelled with a designated driver, taken a taxi or asked for ride home, in all likelihood these collisions would not have happened.
SGI RoadSmart Report, Saskatchewan Government Insurance, April 2003
Home fire deaths down - In 2002, the fire death rate in Ontario reached a record low of 7.8 fire deaths per million population, with 94 fatalities. This marks a decrease of 43 per cent from 1997, when there were 155 fire deaths. The number of injuries related to preventable home fires also dropped by 43 per cent, from 78.9 per million in 1997 to 45.1 per million in 2002.
Ontario Fire Service Messenger, March/April 2003
Job fatalities up - The number of work-related fatalities in Canada rose 10 per cent between 1999 and 2001 - from 835 to 920. The statistics include deaths due to traumatic injury as well as those caused by work-related diseases, conditions and disorders. There were 379,450 accepted time-loss injuries in 1999, up to 392,502 in 2000, then back down to 373,216 in 2001. Each year, musculoskeletal injuries accounted for almost half of the injuries; the back was the most commonly affected body part.
Work Injuries and Diseases: Canada 1999-2001, Association of Workers' Compensation Boards of Canada
Unlicensed drivers - In the US, one fatal crash in five (20 per cent) involves a driver who is unlicensed or whose license is suspended, cancelled, or revoked. Unlicensed drivers are almost five times more likely to be in a fatal crash than are validly licensed drivers, and two-thirds of drivers continue to drive while under suspension. The report suggests that properly applied sanctions and suspensions can reduce the number of unlicensed drivers on the roads.
Unlicensed to Kill: The Sequel, AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, January 2003 ( PDF)
American BAC laws - On October 23, 2000, US President Clinton signed federal legislation, under the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, under which States can qualify for grant funds if they enact and enforce a conforming 0.08 BAC per se law. To date, 34 States, plus DC and Puerto Rico, have complied. The remaining states, with the exception of Massachusetts which has no per se offense, have per se limits of 0.10.
National Conference of State Legislatures Web site, May 2003
Workplace bullying - Quebec is the first North American jurisdiction to enact legislation against psychological harassment in the workplace, which it defines as "...any vexatious behaviour in the form of repeated and hostile or unwanted conduct, verbal comments, actions or gestures, that affects an employee's dignity or psychological or physical integrity and that results in a harmful work environment for the employee." The amendment to the province's Labour Standards Act comes into force on June 1, 2004 makes employers liable to victims for lost wages, punitive damages, compensation for loss of employment and the cost of psychological support.
Psychological Harassment in the Workplace by Norman Grosman, May 7, 2003
Sobering Up? - People who are sobering up are less able to think and plan effectively than people in the process of getting drunk, even at the same BAC level. A McGill University study found cognitive deficits were greater after heavy drinking, when BACs are dropping, than while the drinker is becoming intoxicated. Alcohol breaks down into various toxic chemicals when it metabolizes. Some of these other chemicals, which cannot be detected by a breathalyser, impair cognitive function and increase aggression.
Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, May 2003
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Safety Canada July 2003 |
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