The Recovering Academic
Safety Guy, Investigator, Instructor, Speaker, Researcher, Author
About Mike Fears
Michael Fears is a recovering academic – though he still occasionally uses words like “ontology” in casual conversation. With over 30 years in post-secondary education, he has taught and researched in Calgary, Ottawa, and Moscow, before trading lecture halls for hard hats and hazard assessments.
For the past 20+ years, Michael has been deeply embedded in the world of occupational health and safety, meddling in multiple sectors including education, health care, industrial production, oil and gas servicing, and construction.
A TapRooT® lead investigator and COR auditor, Michael is known for his methodical approach to incident analysis and his ability to ask the one question nobody else thought of (or were hesitant to ask). He currently volunteers on an examination committee for the Board of Canadian Registered Safety Professionals (BCRSP), helping ensure that Canada’s future safety leaders experience the same certification test anxiety as other professionals.
Despite his many volunteer roles and speaking engagements, Michael still works full-time as a senior health and safety manager with a national engineering firm, where he continues to develop a “safety culture” and kicks out the occasional last-minute, coffee-fueled program updates.
Based in Calgary, Alberta, Michael brings a rare mix of academic depth, field-tested experience, and dry wit to every presentation. His sessions are engaging, practical, and designed to leave safety professionals with tools they can actually use – plus a few laughs along the way.
Mike has presented at...
Online Courses by Mike
Industrial Safety Processes
This course covers 21 topics relevant to occupational health and safety practice in industrial environments. Topics include safety by design, woodworking, welding, heavy vehicles, confined spaces, working at heights and other key activities. It is designed to provide solid background information for both new and experienced OHS professionals. It is modeled after reference material required for various North American OHS certifications: CRSP, CRST, and CST.
Working at Heights in Canada (Federal)
This course covers the occupational health and safety hazards, recommended controls, and suggested best practices to safely work at heights. The course is specific to the working at heights requirements of the Canada Labour Code Part 2. It is useful for safety professionals studying for the Canadian Registered Safety Professional Examination (CRSPEX) or Canadian Registered Safety Technician Examination (CRSTEX).
Safety for Manual Material Handling & Storage
This course discusses various hazards, recommended controls, and suggested best practices for industrial operations that involve manual material handling and storage. Topics covered include common injuries related to manual material handling, tools used for lifting and handling items, material storage considerations and shipping and receiving issues. NOTE: Another course - Powered Industrial Trucks - covers common industrial trucks used for material handling (i.e., forklifts).