Yukoners are invited to return to the Workers’ Memorial in Shipyards Park on Friday to commemorate the Day of Mourning in person for the first time since 2019.

The event will also be streamed online at both the Yukon Federation of Labour’s Facebook page and the YFL website starting at 12:15 p.m.

Each year, the Day of Mourning provides Yukoners with an occasion to pay tribute to those who died in work-related incidents or from occupational disease, and to those who have been injured on the job.

In 2022, nearly 450 workers were impacted by a workplace injury that required time away from their jobs to recover. There was one workplace fatality.

“On April 28, we remember those who have lost their lives, suffered injury or illness on the job, or experienced a work-related tragedy,” YFL president Teresa Acheson said last Friday.

“The Day of Mourning offers us an opportunity to renew our commitment to workplace safety and reflect on how we can all contribute to safety at work so everyone gets home safe.”

Kurt Dieckmann, the president and CEO of the territory’s Workers’ Safety and Compensation Board, said as Yukoners return to work after pandemic restrictions, “this year’s Day of Mourning provides us with a chance to focus on workplace health and safety training.

“It is essential that workers are up-to-date on training and feel safe on the job.”

Every year, on April 28, the nation pauses to remember fallen and injured friends, colleagues and family members.

On that date, Canadians renew their commitment to health and safety in the workplace.

The Canadian Labour Congress declared it an annual day of remembrance in 1984.

The federal government entrenched it in 1991 in the Workers Mourning Day Act.

Outside of Canada, the day is commonly referred to as Workers’ Memorial Day. It’s observed in more than 80 countries.