CUPE is celebrating a significant achievement in our ongoing commitment to workplace health and safety.
Troy Winters, CUPE’s senior health and safety officer, has been appointed as the convenor of the working group for ISO 45001, the global standard for occupational health and safety management systems. This role places CUPE at the forefront of global efforts to enhance workplace health and safety standards.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is an independent, non-governmental international organization that develops and publishes standards to ensure quality, safety and efficiency across various industries. The standards are currently used in over 160 countries, impacting millions of workers worldwide.
One of these standards, ISO 45001, provides a framework for managing health and safety risks in the workplace to protect workers from injuries, illness and death. The ISO 45001 working group is tasked with updating and further developing this standard.
Winters’s appointment as convenor, or chair, of the ISO 45001 working group is a testament to CUPE’s expertise and leadership in occupational health and safety. As the first person from the labour movement to be appointed to this position, Winters’s new role marks a historic milestone.
“This appointment is a recognition of the critical insights that labour brings to the table,” he says. “It’s an honour to be able to influence global standards that protect workers everywhere.”
This is not just a personal accomplishment. It also opens the door for feedback from CUPE locals to set international standards. “Our involvement guarantees that diversity and inclusion are considered in global health and safety standards,” Winters emphasizes. He is particularly committed to making sure issues such as pregnancy, gender and age are addressed in these discussions.
CUPE’s participation in the ISO 45001 working group showcases our union’s dedication to improving workplace health and safety on a global scale.
“Health and safety practices should be informed by the people who are most affected by them,” Winters notes, highlighting the importance of real-world experiences and worker needs in shaping standards. “This is about making tangible improvements in the lives of workers.”
In October 2024, the working group will hold its first in-person meeting in El Salvador. Winters is eagerly anticipating this event. “Meeting face-to-face with experts from around the world is exciting,” he shares. “However, most of our work will be done online, which is both effective and necessary. The hybrid model allows more people to contribute, centring a global perspective.”
The working group expects to refine the ISO 45001 standard over the next three years, with results expected in 2027.
CUPE’s involvement in this international effort will help protect workers and promote safe and healthy work environments. CUPE members can feel confident knowing that their union is at the cutting edge of making workplaces safer for all and proud that our collective voice will have a meaningful impact on workers in and outside Canada.
About Troy Winters
Troy Winters is a senior officer, Health and Safety at CUPE’s national office in Ottawa. He supports local unions with health and safety, he represents CUPE members on government committees, and contributes to developing national and international standards in areas such as occupational health and safety management, infectious disease control and ergonomics. A Certified Registered Safety Professional (CRSP), he also holds certifications in harassment investigation, and in workplace safety auditing, mediation and critical incident stress management.
