The Boilermakers Total Health program (BtH), an initiative that will help keep Boilermakers safe and healthy on and off the job, has received an important endorsement from a prestigious US government agency.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has approved BtH as an affiliate program for promoting the safety, health and wellbeing of workers. It's the first time NIOSH has affiliated with a non-US organization in promoting the total health of workers.

"Programs like BtH are the future of worker health and wellbeing," said Boilermakers International Vice-President Joe Maloney. "The affiliation with NIOSH is huge in terms of the benefits to Canadian Boilermakers."

"We've worked hard over the years to make Boilermaker workplaces safe," said Jason McInnis, Boilermakers' Canadian Director of Health and Safety. "Today, members are more aware than ever that occupational exposures and personal health issues like obesity and smoking are becoming just as important as safety on the job.

"The affiliation with NIOSH will give us access to a huge pool of valuable resources, not to mention the advantages of working in collaboration with the world's foremost workplace safety and health agency."

As an affiliate of NIOSH, BtH will work with the agency on research, development, education and promotion of appropriate health and safety programs. The NIOSH affiliate-program status is a first for Canada and a first for a union-developed program.

BtH was launched earlier this year to protect and improve Canadian Boilermakers' long-term health, wellbeing and quality of life.

BtH has two components:

• HealthBenchmark, designed to set meaningful standards for functional abilities and medical assessment for pre-apprentices entering the trade, and
• HealthArc, a comprehensive health and wellness program designed to promote member health 24/7, on and off the job. Education and training, member and family assistance and targeted personal health promotion campaigns will be some of the initiatives launched to maintain and improve member health.

"Throughout the 20th century, there have been significant changes to the Boilermaker working environments and our understanding of health and safety," says McInnis. "Boilermakers have met these challenges with the continued development and investment in infrastructure, programs, equipment and training.

"BtH is the latest step in that decades-long effort."