Prince George, B.C.- 250News has learned the  first report from  the Administrator of WorkBC, Gordon Macatee,  has been submitted to the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training.

Macatee  was  put in place as Administrator of WorkSafe BC to  bring about the  changes as recommended  in the Dyble Report, a report that  was  called for in the wake of the  fatal Babine and Lakeland Mill explosions. Dyble's report found that Worksafe BC paid “insufficient attention to important legal precedents that underpin the legitimate gathering of evidence for prosecution purposes”, even though the Criminal Justice Branch had previously shared its concerns on collection of evidence.  His recommendations called for improving policies, procedures, and communication within WorksafeBC and for measures to improve the interaction between investigating and prosecuting agencies.

The report from Macatee is expected to  outline how  the  recommendations will be implemented including:

• Ensuring future investigations are handled correctly
• Ensuring sawmills are safe workplaces by implementing the 90-day action plan on sawmill safety.

Macatee was also mandated to:

• Review workers’ compensation boards in other jurisdictions, to understand the merits of and determine best practices in organizational structures specifically relating to the separation of enforcement vs. regulation.
• Develop a plan for implementing a world-class inspection and investigation regime, incorporating best practices, workforce review and enhanced training.
• Conduct the search for and finalize the appointment of a new and permanent CEO.

He was to provide a status report at the beginning of July.  The report was delivered to the Ministry on July 2nd.

Ministry staff  have been reviewing the report and confirm it will be released to the public “soon.”

In both fatal explosions, criminal charges were not laid as the Crown pointed to issues with the manner in which evidence was collected, issues which made it unlikely there would be any conviction.