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Volume 12 Edition 1
30 January 2015
PREVENTING FALLS ON STAIRS
The stairs in your workplace or your
home can be dangerous!
PREVENTING FALLS ON STAIRS cont’d
Factor in Fall
Rushing
Most of the falls on stairs can be prevented. As with any workplace hazard, understanding that there
is a hazard is the first step.
Why Do People Fall?
Health, environmental and behavioural reasons are all contributing factors to falls on stairs.

Health factors include reduced vision, weakness,
drowsiness and loss of balance

Environmental factors include poor stairway design,
poor maintenance, non-existent or dysfunctional
handrails, poor lighting and tread surfaces

Behavioural factors include lack of concentration,
carrying something while walking on stairs, unsuitable footwear, and hurrying
Strategy to Prevent


Lack of Attention

(ie: some people fall at
the second to last step
because they think they 
have already reached the
bottom of the stairs)
Low or reduced vision

What Are The Consequences From Falling?
Physical consequences can include soft tissue injuries, broken bones, and even death. An example of where this occurred; A worker fell down stairs in a non-municipal workplace in 2013 and died a few weeks later from complications
related to the injury.


How Do You Eliminate Falls?
It stands to reason; good design of stairways can substantially reduce the risk of mis-stepping.
Even the best design cannot eliminate the human factors
(health and behaviour) that contribute to falls on stairs.
Carrying objects on the
stairs

Take your time
and be extra
cautious
Always use handrails
Avoid being distracted when
using a stairway
Make sure your
perception of the
stairway is accurate, especially in
beginning or ending stairway use
Remove your
reading glasses
when going up or
down stairs
Take extra care
when wearing
bifocal or progressive eyeglasses
Ensure there is
adequate lighting
on the stairs
Avoid carrying
objects on stairs,
if possible, especially if they block
your view of the
stairs
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
It is January, a new year, and in Victoria it
means that spring is just around the corner.
As Lord Tennyson said in Locksley Hall, “in
the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to
thoughts of love…”. This may even be true
for commissionaires of all ages and genders, but it is
also equally likely that in spring a commissionaire’s fancy
turns to thoughts of wage increases. As most know, our
basic wage for commissionaires is determined periodically through our collective bargaining process and then
applied across the whole Division. Since 2009 the basic
wage has increased on a cumulative basis by almost 8%,
while increases in Victoria’s consumer price index (CPI),
according to Statistics Canada, have only been about
6%. In the competitive environment of our commercial
contracts our ability to increase our billing rates is limited
to about the CPI rate or less, so we need to manage
wages within this constraint.
The wage plan for the current three-year cycle, in which
we are entering the third year, was predicated on increases to the base wage 1.6% in the first year (CPI increase -0.3%), 2.0% in the second year (CPI increase
0.9%), and constant in the third year (estimated CPI increase <1%). While there will be no wage increase for
this fiscal year, with the front-end loading of the wage
plan and including the end-of-year wage supplement into
wages as they are paid, our wages remain well ahead of
the increases in Victoria’s CPI and are still significantly
better than any of our competitors. The wage plan for
the next cycle will be determined in the spring of 2016.
I am pleased to say that our integration of CoVal Security
(Duncan) and Royal Victoria Security is now complete.
For most people, the most visible change is the increased number of Commissionaires vehicles on the
road, as our inventory on Vancouver Island has increased from five to about 20, and this number will continue to grow in the new fiscal year.
Cont’d next page .........
CEO message cont’d ............
Perhaps not so visible, but more significant, is that
Commissionaires Victoria, the Islands and Yukon now
has more than 1000 employees, an increase of almost
10% in the last three years. This clearly demonstrates
that we are continuing to meet the goals of our not-forprofit society: to create employment for veterans of the
Canadian Forces, Allied Forces and RCMP, first responders (police, firefighters and paramedics), and
other Canadians of good character.
As I have said many times, we are able to be successful in this field because of the well-deserved reputation
of the Corps for professionalism. Keep up the good
work!
John Dewar,
CEO
OPERATIONS
Over the holidays we said farewell to Gordana
Vuckovic (Customer Services Manager) who
has accepted an employment opportunity on
the lower mainland. This translated in the Operations section, redistributing duties based on new requirements of our
clients.
What contracts Gordana had responsibility for have now
been redistributed amongst the Customer Services Managers in order to continue providing the same high level of
service they received from her.
The competition for a Operations Administrative Assistant is
complete and Cmre Rebecca Larche was the successful
candidate chosen. This is a newly created position in OPS
in order to assist the team as we meet the new challenges
of the coming year.
Although contracts with the Victoria Conference Centre and
Victoria Parking have expired, it will be business as usual
until Commissionaires Victoria receives a Request for Proposal (RFP) from these clients. We will be submitting our
bid for both contracts and more details once known will be
made available.
BC Transit offers a bus pass program to
companies who wish to register if they
have ten or more employees.
Commissionaires Victoria, the Island and
Yukon Division (CVIY) is registered in the program however, the number of personnel who are registered has dwindled.
Should we not meet the pre-requisites for the required
number of personnel, our participation could be jeopardized with the PROPASS program being cancelled.
Parking is not available at all sites and taking the bus can
alleviate that problem.
Cmre Collin Cooke (CFAD Rocky Pt) was presented with
his 12 year service medal by Cdr Randy Gynn (Board
Chair).
The annual cost of a PROPASS is less than the purchase
price of 12 monthly passes (almost $125.00 less).
The PROPASS fee is deducted directly from your pay in
equal payments each pay period.
For those interested in registering, CVIY pays BC Transit
upfront for the pass ($875.42) and you simply, through
payroll deduction, pay back CVIY the amount of $33.67
each pay period.
As with everything, there are rules and regulations that
must be followed before registering for the program and
whilst on the program. They are available at the time of
registering.
Anyone interested in registering for a PROPASS are asked
to contact Mike Grayston in the Divisional Office (250-7277755).
Cmre Gordon Burleson, (CFAD Rocky Pt) was presented
with his 12 year service medal by Cdr Randy Gynn (Board
Chair).