Due to the overwhelming response to this session members joined together at the North London Community Optimist Centre, as no local members could accommodate the 115 people from member facilities in attendance!

Generally regional EMC Members meet in Member facilities and the SIG will include a Plant Tour and Group Continuous Improvement Exercise. The Group CI exercise is when members participating on the plant tour are asked to pick out 3 things they saw on the tour that they liked and three things that they saw that they would have suggestions on how to improve. After the tour participants break into small groups compiling their observations which are then presented to the host.  This is a great way for hosts to get some outside perspectives and CI ideas and a great way for members to network.

Dave Whitney of the Ontario Ministry of Labour presented the MOL's Safe at Work Ontario Program which is in its 4^th year. His presentation covered the following;

• Overview of Safe At Work Ontario
• Provincial Occupational Health and Safety Initiatives
• 2011/2012 Industrial Initiatives
• Internal Responsibility System - Supervisory Competency
• Workplace Violence and Harassment - Conducting a Risk Assessment
• Update on the Expert Advisory Panel on Occupational Health and Safety

Also, upcoming blitzes by the Ontario Ministry of Labour were detailed;

Focus	Program	Date (2011/2012)
New and Young Worker	Industrial Health Care Sectors	May 1 - August 31
Tower Crane Supplier	Industrial Specialized and Professional Services	May 1 - May 30
Personal Protective Equipment	Industrial Health Care	October 1 - October 31
Racking and Storage	Industrial	November 1 - November 30
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD)	Industrial Construction Mining Health Care Sectors	February 1 - February 29 (2012)

 If you would like the full Power Point the Ministry of Labour presented please let me know and I would be glad to send it to you (jbates@emccanada.org) .

The Legal Due Diligence for Manufactures Update was provided by Jennifer Costin, Partner in the area of Labour/Employment Law at Lerner's LLP London.

Jennifer's presentation covered/reviewed and in the case of the new Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act introduced the following;

1. Terminations - A Refresher
2. Update on Recent Case Law on Terminations
3. Human Rights: Parental Obligations
4. Introducing the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)
5. Workplace Violence and Harassment: An Update on Bill 168

If you would like the full Power Point that Lerner's presented please let me know and I would be glad to send it to you (jbates@emccanada.org).

I would like to thank Dave Whitney of the Ontario Ministry of Labour and Jennifer Costin of Lerners LLP in London for sharing their knowledge and their support of the London/Oxford Manufacturing sector!

The London/Oxford Consortiums next SIG session will be on October 26^th at McCormick Canada, in London. It will be an innovation SIG featuring best practicing sharing from 3 London EMC Members. The focus of this session will be on innovation product, people and process. A Plant tour and group continuous improvement exercise will be included at this session. If you are interested in attending please let me know asap....room is limited to 70 people and I am quickly approaching that number already!

Jason Bates EMC FSA London/Oxford

jbates@emccanada.org