Additional Definitions

Question 1

Acute (or short-term) fatigue

Answer 1

Fatigue caused by failure to get adequate sleep in the period before a work shift.

Question 2

There are four types of stressors

Answer 2

Acute stressors
Episodic (or daily) stressors
Chronic stressors
Catastrophic stressors

Question 3

Acute stressors

Answer 3

One of the 4 types of stressors

Time-specific events of high-intensity, short duration and infrequent occurrence, such as a performance review, a car accident or unexpected encounter.

Question 4

Acute toxicity

Answer 4

The immediate harm caused by exposure to a chemical substance

Question 5

Bacteria

Answer 5

Microscopic organisms that live in soil, water, organic matter, or the bodies of plants and animals.

Question 6

Bullying

Answer 6

Repeated actions or verbal comments that lead to mental harm, isolation, or humiliation of a worker (or group), often with the intent to wield power over them.

Question 7

Capitalist social formation

Answer 7

The structure of capitalist societies created by the interaction of economic and social systems.

Question 8

Carpal tunnel syndrome

Answer 8

A cumulative trauma disorder caused by repeated compression of the median nerve in the wrist and resulting in pain as well as loss of coordination, sensation, and circulation.

Question 9

Chronic fatigue syndrome

Answer 9

An ongoing, severe feeling of tiredness not relieved by sleep.

Question 10

Compressed work week

Answer 10

An arrangement wherein workers work longer each day to reduce the number of days per week (or month) that they are required to work.

Question 11

Cumulative trauma disorder

Answer 11

An injury that develops due to repeatedly exposing a part of the body to damage, such as carpal tunnel syndrome.

Question 12

Disability insurance

Answer 12

Private insurance benefits providing wage-loss replacement for workers who require a longer period of time away from work than can be accommodated under sick leave provisions and that is required for reasons other than a work-related injury.

Question 13

Dose

Answer 13

The amount of a chemical that enters the body.

Question 14

Employment standards

Answer 14

An act that sets out minimum terms and conditions of employment for a jurisdiction, such as maximum hours of work and required rest breaks. Sometimes called labour standards.

Question 15

Epidemiologist

Answer 15

Scientists who study the patterns and causes of illness and disease in the population.

Question 16

Etiology

Answer 16

The cause of an injury of illness.

Question 17

Extended work hours

Answer 17

Hour of work beyond 8 or 12 in a single day.

Question 18

Externalize

Answer 18

Transfer costs to another actor or enterprise.

While there certainly are costs associated with workplace injury, employers can externalize many of these costs—pass them off—onto workers, their families, and taxpayers.

Question 19

False positive

Answer 19

Concluding that a difference or relationship exists when it does not.

Scientists tend to be particularly concerned with false positives because of their potential consequences. For example, saying a drug is effective at treating a disease when it actually is not can harm patients by subjecting them to an ineffective course of treatment.

Question 20

False negative

Answer 20

Concluding that no difference or relationship exists when it does.

False negatives can also have real-life consequences as they may lead to inaction on health threats. The potentially harmful consequences of false positives means scientists are prone to being very conservative in their conclusions.

Question 21

Fatality benefits

Answer 21

Benefits paid by a workers’ compensation board to the dependents of a worker who has died. These can include funeral costs and wage-loss benefits.

Only once an injury/death has been found to be compensable

Question 22

Heat stroke

Answer 22

A health effect caused by a body becoming too hot.

Question 23

Human rights legislation

Answer 23

An act prohibiting discrimination on the basis of protected grounds (e.g., disability, age, gender, race).

Question 24

Hypothermia

Answer 24

A health effect caused by a body becoming too cold.

Question 25

Idiopathic

Answer 25

Arising from an unknown cause.

Question 26

Index case

Answer 26

The first case that indicates the outbreak of a disease.

Question 27

Premiums

Answer 27

The amount paid by an employer for workers’ compensation coverage.

Question 28

Investigation kit

Answer 28

A collection of materials, including a process, forms, and recording equipment designed to assist in an incident investigation.

Question 29

Job sharing

Answer 29

An arrangement wherein two workers share a single position, each working some portion of the otherwise full-time job.

Wellness initiative

Question 30

Latency period

Answer 30

The time between exposure and the development of symptoms from that exposure.

Question 31

Learning

Answer 31

The process of acquiring knowledge and skills that can lead to behavioural change.

Is an important outcome of training. Our behaviours are often shaped by our assumptions about the world. OHS training is no different: we each have a theory (albeit perhaps incomplete and poorly articulated) about how “best” to teach others

Question 32

Legitimacy

Answer 32

Credibility of political actors or a political system that depends upon the actors or system being seen to serve the public good and therefore warranting continued support.

Question 33

Lethal concentration

Answer 33

The amount of a substance in the air or water required to cause death.

Question 34

Local toxicity

Answer 34

Reaction to a toxic substance reaction at the point of contact.

Question 35

Material safety data sheets (MSDSs)

Answer 35

Information about hazardous material handling that employers must provide under the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System.

Question 36

Near miss

Answer 36

An event that could have, but did not, lead to harm to workers.

Question 37

Prima facie

Answer 37

A fact or circumstance accepted as correct until proved otherwise.

Question 38

Production process

Answer 38

The steps required to complete work.

Question 39

Prosecute

Answer 39

Court proceedings regarding the violation of a law.

Question 40

Regulation

Answer 40

A rule made by a federal, provincial, or territorial cabinet, cabinet minister, or other public body under the authority of an act and having the force of law.

Question 41

Regulation

Answer 41

A rule made by a federal, provincial, or territorial cabinet, cabinet minister, or other public body under the authority of an act and having the force of law.

Question 42

Rem

Answer 42

A standard measure of radiation.

Question 43

Statistically significant

Answer 43

A result unlikely to have occurred by random chance.

Question 44

Temperature homeostasis

Answer 44

Maintaining a core body temperature at about 37 degrees Celsius.