The Workers Compensation Board (WCB) congratulates Jack MacPhail of Bluefield High School, who won a bronze medal in Workplace Safety while representing Prince Edward Island at the recent Skills Canada competition in Winnipeg. MacPhail is a Gr.12 carpentry student, and earned his place at the national competition when he placed 1st in Workplace Safety at the provincial Skills PEI competition.

"The Skills Canada competition continues to be a great opportunity to highlight workplace safety," said Stuart Affleck, Chair of PEI Workers Compensation Board. "Any time we can get youth thinking about safety in the workplace and the hazards that exist is a worthwhile experience."

"At the national competition, judges were very impressed with MacPhail’s clear understanding of workplace safety hazards and ways to control for these hazards," said Rebecca McQuaid, Youth Education Consultant with WCB. McQuaid sits on the National Technical Committee for Workplace Safety with Skills Canada, and was also at the competition. "Skills Canada does a tremendous job of recognizing secondary and post-secondary students for excellence in the skilled trades and technology, as well as promoting these skills to younger students by opening the competition up to the public to observe."

MacPhail’s shop teacher, Mr. Leo McDonald, had this to say of the young competitor: "When it came time to learning about workplace safety principles, he not only had a great understanding of the subject, but he was a role model to the class and school. He worked hard on his own to prepare for this competition. I am very proud of his dedication. I’m also convinced he will share his skills and knowledge with classmates and co-workers."

MacPhail’s 3rd place finish at the Skills Canada competition follows another student win in Workplace Safety at the national level. In May, Morell Regional High School students Ben MacMillan and Jacob MacDonald took 2nd place in a national Youth Video Contest, sponsored by the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS). The contest challenged students to create a video about the importance of safety on the job. The Grade 11 students delivered a powerful message in their video, entitled "Know Your Limits," which followed a fatigued young farm worker throughout his daily tasks. For more information on the Workplace Safety Video Contest, visit wcb.pe.ca/Workplace/Contest.

Visit skillspei.com or skillscompetencescanada.com/en/ for more information on the provincial and national Skills competitions. For more information on young worker safety on P.E.I., visit wcb.pe.ca/Workplace/YoungWorkers.

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