Service NL
May 20, 2014

The following statement was given today in the House of Assembly by the Honourable Dan Crummell, Minister Responsible for the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission:

Minister Recognizes Mr. Joe Santos for Outstanding Health and Safety Leadership

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to recognize educator and safety advocate, Mr. Joe Santos, for his continued contributions to health and safety awareness and the positive impact he continues to have on his students, his school and the greater community.

Mr. Santos is an educator at O’Donel High School in Mount Pearl. He first introduced the Workplace Safety 3220 course at O’Donel High, which is now in its third year and has over 170 students enrolled. The course, created in partnership with the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission, provides students with an opportunity to learn the importance of safety and emergency preparedness in the workplace and gives them the tools to keep themselves and others safe when they move forward into summer jobs and eventually careers of their own.

In addition to this Mr. Speaker, as a certified Red Cross First-Aid and Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System instructor, Mr. Santos also ensures that all students in his classes are properly trained and provides instruction to his peers during school district professional development days.

He was also instrumental in arranging for the purchase and installation of an automated external defibrillator (or AED) machine at O’Donel High School, which was a first for any school in Newfoundland and Labrador. When the machine was installed, Mr. Santos took it upon himself to see that all staff, including the school’s custodian and evening users of the building, were adequately trained and familiar with its use.

Mr. Santos is a leader, supporter and mentor. He has founded a popular first responders group at his school, arranged for his students to benefit from the health and safety expertise of external speakers, employers and other organizations, and even works with students who compete in the workplace safety category at Skills Canada competitions.

Most recently Mr. Speaker, he was named 2013’s Health and Safety Educator of the Year by the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission. With all his efforts in furthering health and safety in our province, Mr. Santos is very deserving of this accolade.

I ask all honourable members to join me today to congratulate Mr. Joe Santos on receiving the Health and Safety Educator of the Year award, and to thank him for his continued contributions to the lives of young Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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2014 05 20         2:15 p.m.