WorkSafeBC officials announced that its board chair, Ralph McGinn, has died.
“It is with great sadness that we announce that Ralph McGinn, WorkSafeBC’s Board Chair, passed away suddenly on May 11,” said Anne Naser, WorkSafeBC president, in a statement. “This is shocking and saddening for all of us who knew him. He was respected and valued both personally and professionally and will be greatly missed.”
Naser explained that McGinn had a long history of dedication to WorkSafeBC and to the province. He served as president and CEO of the Workers’ Compensation Board of British Columbia (now WorkSafeBC) from 1998 to 2003. Prior to that, he was vice president of Prevention Services and was responsible for overseeing the revision of B.C.’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulations, which came into effect in 1998.
WorkSafeBC also noted that McGinn had an impact internationally, contributing to a wide range of policy and regulatory development for mining safety, health, and environmental protection, in Australia, South America and Africa. As a professional engineer, he had senior roles with the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, including chief inspector of mines from 1988 to 1993.
“His contributions to WorkSafeBC were significant, and we honour his legacy to our organization and the communities we serve,” said Naser.
Minister of Labour Harry Bains also expressed his sadness upon hearing of McGinn’s passing.
“He was a man of integrity, who had a joy for life and a commitment to leave the world a better place,” said Bains.
Bains added that McGinn’s work overseeing the revision of B.C.’s Occupational Health and Safety Regulations resulted in systemic improvements that workers still benefit from today and led to his position as chair of the board of directors of WorkSafeBC in 2017.
“On behalf of the Ministry of Labour, I offer my heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and all his colleagues who are mourning his passing. Ralph will be missed.”
I was one of the many inspectors for the Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources that benefited from our association with Ralph. He will be missed by all who new him. My condolences to his family.
This was a man who was the architect of the Worksafe Act of 2002 who have since denied disabled and injured workers medical treatment wage loss and pensions ever since. There are 10’s of thousands of people in the province who have suffered directly because of him and his policies and that is what his legacy should be that he left behind.