A new campaign by the Electrical Safety Coalition of Ontario is hoping to convince contractors across the province to "Just don't ask" their electricians to work on live, energized equipment.

"We're trying to make them aware that any short-term inconvenience that might come from shutting the power off is more than made up by the injuries and death that will be avoided by following these guidelines," said First District International Representative Tom Reid.

The coalition, which includes the IBEW, the Electrical Contractors Association of Ontario and the Industrial Accident Prevention Association, launched the "Just Don't Ask" campaign at a public event in June hosted by the Center for Health and Safety Innovation in Mississauga.

John Pender, executive secretary treasurer of the IBEW Ontario construction council, said as an apprentice he witnessed his mentor suffer from a traumatic on-the-job accident due to working on live equipment. "The job could have easily been done after the unit was de-energized, but the mentality at the time was that you did whatever was necessary to please the client."

Half of all injuries suffered by electricians in Ontario are due to working live. While occasionally inside electricians have no choice but to work on energized equipment, many times working live is done for the sake of convenience or saving a few extra dollars.

"It puts our members unnecessarily at risk and it could end up costing the client a lot more in the long run if an accident occurs that could have been prevented if they shut off the power in the first place," Reid said.

In situations where shutting off the power isn't an option, the coalition supports strict guidelines and safety standards for contractors to adopt.

The "Just Don't Ask" campaign is getting its message out through a series of paid ads, work site posters and Internet outreach, including using social media tools like Facebook and Twitter.

The coalition also produced an authorization form for contractors and electricians to present to clients and general contractors before any job informing them of the danger of live work on electrical circuits. "It's the key item of this campaign," said Eyal Roberts, executive vice president of the Electrical Contractors Association of Ontario.