Friday April 28 will mark the 5th International Day of Mourning. Commemorated around the world, the Day of Mourning highlights the loss of thousands of workers every year to fatal accidents and occupational disease. In Alberta, Day of Mourning is expected to be the largest since its inception, with tens of thousands of workers participating in events around the province.

“People should not have to live with the fear that they or their loved one may not arrive back home at the end of the work day,” says Audrey Cormack, President of the Alberta Federation of Labour. “We mark April 28 to remind our community that working shouldn’t be a cause of death.”

“Day of Mourning is partly about remembrance and partly about making change happen,” says Cormack. “We do not want the workers who we have lost at work to be forgotten. We want their memory to carry us forward to prevent anyone else from losing their life at work.”

Tens of thousands of workers in Alberta will be commemorating the day at their worksite with a minute of silence, black armbands, flags at half-mast or some other form of small ceremony. There will also be larger events open to the public in most centres around the province.

“Very few people know that at least 2 workers in Alberta are killed at work every week. Around the world, a worker is killed every 30 seconds,” says Cormack. “Last year 114 Alberta workers were killed. Each one of those workers had a family and friends who now mourn them. Their deaths were all preventable.”

Day of Mourning has its origins in Canada. It was first proclaimed in Parliament in 1986. Since then it has become an international event, with over 70 countries marking the day as the time to remember workers killed on the job.

“My hope is that Day of Mourning can act as the catalyst to change attitudes and policies around workplace safety, so that one day, no one has to die because they worked for a living.”

For more information contact:

Audrey M. Cormack, President at (780) 499-6530 (cell)