A Day of Mourning

Today is a National Day of Mourning in Canada, or International Workers' Memorial Day in other countries. It is a day set aside to remember workers who have been killed, injured, disabled, or made ill by their work. Today's observance is especially relevant in Toronto, where an employee of the Toronto Transit Commission died in a work-related accident earlier this week.

Consider the following statistics from the International Labour Organization:

• two million workers die each year of work-related accidents and illnesses
• workers suffer 270 million work-related accidents each year
• workers suffer 160 million work-related illnesses each year

The idea of commemorating workplace casualties originated with the Canadian Union of Public Employees in 1984 and was formally recognized by the Canadian parliament seven years later. Today, Worker's Memorial Day is formally observed in over a dozen countries, and unions in other nations are also pursuing official recognition.