Cando Safety Initiative Wins RAC Award

Good Catch Campaign Has Transformed Safety Hazard Reporting

BRANDON, MB – November 29, 2023 – The Railway Association of Canada (RAC) has honoured Cando Rail & Terminals with a 2023 RAC Safety and Environment Award for the company’s Good Catch Campaign, an employee driven program that recognizes and rewards exceptional safety hazard identification and action.

“At Cando Rail & Terminals we strive for a spirit of consultation and cooperation. We recognize that when employees participate directly by providing their ideas, experience, and effort, we all benefit,” says Cando President & CEO Brian Cornick. “Identifying and reporting safety hazards has always been a part of working safely. What our Good Catch Campaign adds is a systematic process, which was developed by our employees in the field, that not only engages our people to proactively identify risks but also acknowledges them for their role in preventing incidents.”

The Good Catch Campaign is a company-wide employee recognition program which acknowledges employees who have acted on their own initiative to prevent an incident or accident through proactive identification and addressing of safety hazards and near misses. The Campaign is based on formal and consistent acknowledgement of employees’ efforts through both celebratory recognition company-wide and gift rewards.

“The program was initiated several years ago when field employees felt there needed to be a more accessible way to report hazards. We transformed the company’s entire safety hazard reporting process,” says John Raymond, one of the Cando Safety Department team members who leads the initiative. “Implementing initiatives by engaging our employees creates a culture of safety ownership from the ground up.”

As the reporting/recording process evolved through education, re-enforcement and a more structured approach, Cando’s reporting of hazards and near misses improved by 9983%, providing the opportunity to improve safety through proactive measures.

“Most importantly, our record demonstrates that our cooperative dedication to consistently addressing and correcting hazards brings a reduced incident rate while further establishing our fair and just culture in the workplace,” says Raymond.

Cando Rail & Terminals is Canada’s leading provider of specialized rail operating services and terminal infrastructure that allow industrial shippers to optimize their supply chains and connect to Class 1 railways by leveraging Cando’s operating capabilities and network of owned multi-purpose rail terminals. The company provides a wide range of rail services including short line operations, industrial switching, material handling, terminal & transload services, railcar staging, train assembly, and related services.