Occupational Health and Safety Issues in Ontario Sawmills and Veneer/Plywood Plants: A Pilot Study

Table 2

Salient information from questionnaires.

Question	Response
(i) Type of wood processed	(i) Industry average = 55% softwood and 45% hardwood
(ii) Number of firms using exclusively softwood	(ii) 12
(iii) Number of firms using exclusively hardwood	(iii) 6
(iv) Number of firms reporting as sawmill	(iv) 18
(v) Number of firms reporting as veneer/plywood plant	(v) 17
(vi) Number of firms reporting 25 to 50% workers working unusual work shift (larger than 8 hrs/day)	(vi) 16
(vii) Work force demographics by age	(vii) 25 years or younger = 19%; (viii) 35–49 years = 64%; (ix) Over 50 years = 17%
(viii) Formal health and safety program	(x) 80% employer administer some form of hearing conservation program; (xi) 33% employers have respiratory protection program or a medical surveillance program