In a day that mourns the deaths of workers, union supporters in North Bay were focussing on the future of workers health.
During a Workers Day of Mourning ceremony outside North Bay City Hall, Henri Giroux called on the government to ban asbestos from Canadian buildings.
Giroux, the President of the North Bay & District Labour Council says 59 other countries have banned the dangerous substance found in the ceilings and pipes of aging buildings.
“We have 2,000 people that die every year of asbestos and it’s time the federal government takes a lead on this and ban it all across Canada,” said Giroux.
Wayne Glibbery, a Northeastern Training Services representative out of Sudbury, believes asbestos is a silent killer.
“You don’t see asbestos first hand, it’s later on, it’s 20 years down the road, all of a sudden someone puts in a claim that they have Asbestosis or they have Mesothelioma, they have stomach cancer, so it’s later on,” he said.
The Canadian Labour Congress and the Ontario Federation of Labour and all the unions have written letters to the Minister of Labour to tell them the government they need to take care of the asbestos issue.
The asbestos concern was part of a 45 minute ceremony held outside city hall.
Overall, Giroux believes it’s important to honour all workers who have lost their lives on the workplace.
“It would be nice that we didn't have to have this day because it would be nice for people to go to work and go home safety doesn’t happen, there’s a 1,000 deaths a year, that’s even without disease accidents that start in the work place.”
