Not necessarily. Your workplace may have other health, safety, environmental and behavioural (free of harassment and bullying) issues that you may want to address in your policy and that are not specifically addressed in our legislation.
Since the safety policy sets out the responsibilities of everyone in the workplace, it is imperative that it be displayed in a prominent location for all to see and read. Posting copies in various areas of the workplace including separate buildings may be necessary. Deciding the best locations to post copies of the policy can be facilitated by consulting the employees at your workplace, including the JHSC .
WorkSafeNB also recognizes that copies of policies can be provided to employees in the form of safety handbooks or other formats that allow employees to review the policy as required.
With respect to vehicles, provided that the employee is able to regularly access the policy either electronically or posted at the main place of business, the requirements of the legislation are met.
A safety policy is an important component of an effective health and safety program. Since the new legislation requires that employers with 20 or more employees establish a health and safety program (and that this program must be reviewed annually), reviewing the policy at the same time as the remainder of the program would be appropriate. For workplaces that are not required to have a health and safety program but are required to have a policy, it would be a good practice to review the policy annually to ensure it continues to meet the workplace's needs.
Consultation involves not only giving employees information but also listening to them and taking into account what they provide for feedback before making any final health and safety decisions. It involves an exchange of information, not just pushing information out to the employees.
However, consultation does not remove the employer’s right to manage the business. Management still makes the final decision and communicates it to the workforce. However, talking to employees is an important part of successfully managing health and safety in the workplace. Consulting employees about health and safety can result in:
Regularly employed is not affected by full-time or part-time status. For example, if a business employs 10 full-time employees and 10 part-time employees, the business has 20 employees regularly employed. This includes seasonal employment, excluding high hazard work, if employed for at least three consecutive months and it is expected to be recurring. For more information please refer to the legislative interpretation "Regularly Employed".
For the purposes of subsections 8(1) and 8.1(1), employers must take into account all their operations in New Brunswick. If, for example, an employer has an operation in Saint John with 15 regularly employed employees and another five regularly employed employees in Edmundston, the employer will be required to comply with the provisions of subsections 8(1) and 8.1(1).
Subsection 17(1) will only apply to an employer where there are at least five employees at one workplace and the total number of employees for that employer does not exceed 19 anywhere in the province if there is more than one workplace.
Probably. However, the company will have to compare the components specified in the legislation against the program to satisfy itself that all the elements are included. Resources will be available on the WorkSafeNB website to help with that comparison..
With respect to the health and safety program records, if a remote site (construction job site)sends all its records to head office for filing,is that sufficient for having records available?
Yes, however what is important is that regardless of the system used, the records must be readily available to employees, JHSCs (and H&S representatives) and an officer on request.
Because the legislation doesn’t specify how the records must be kept, either an electronic or a paper record management system would meet the intent of this provision.
With respect to this provision, the only documents that you as an employer are required to provide are those that are pertinent to the employee’s specific workplace. In other words, an employee would not be entitled to receive documents for another workplace that you as an employer have control over (for example, workplace inspection and accident records).
The purpose of reviewing a health and safety program is to make sure it is up-to-date and effective. A program review helps identify the program’s strengths and weaknesses and allows for focus on the areas that need improvement. The JHSC or H&S representatives will need to be involved in the review process. Properly documenting the review is essential to demonstrating that the review has taken place. Records, including minutes from a JHSC meeting at which the annual results and statistics, audit results (internal and/or external body), etc. are reviewed, and any recommendations captured would provide proof of a review. In addition, an updated "revised date" on the written program would be considered proof of review.
My construction company has a Certificate of Recognition (COR) from the New Brunswick Construction Safety Association (NBCSA). Part of the requirement for the certificate is that we have a health and safety program. Does our current program meet the requirements of the new legislation?
If your company continues to meet the requirements of the NBCSA COR Program, including annual internal audits to assess its implementation and effectiveness, then it is likely that you meet the requirements of the legislation.
However, an employer’s responsibility to ensure compliance with all provisions of the OHS Act and regulations does not change when they are part of the COR Program.
NBCSA conducts an audit of our health and safety program every three years to determine its effectiveness and to confirm re-certification. One of the requirements for a health and safety program in the new legislation is that it is monitored to ensure implementation and effectiveness and that it be reviewed annually.
Does an audit by NBCSA meet the requirements of the legislation for monitoring and annual review of the health and safety program?
With respect to the annual review requirements, an audit every three years would fall short of what is intended by the legislation. That being said, an annual audit conducted by the workplace could form the basis for the review requirements for that given year. It is our understanding that NBCSA requires annual self-audits by the contractor to maintain certification.
Regarding monitoring for effectiveness, a periodic health and safety audit by an external provider or conducted internally can be an effective tool to determine implementation and effectiveness of the program. If a periodic audit is the chosen tool to meet the requirements for monitoring and the annual review, it should be noted in the health and safety program. However, an employer’s responsibility to ensure that the health and safety program is meeting all provisions of the OHS Act and regulations does not change when audits are conducted by an external audit provider.
The requirement for a health and safety program is for employers with 20 or more employees regularly employed. The requirement for orientation applies to all employers in the province regardless of the number of employees. If you are a workplace that requires a health and safety program, it would be appropriate to incorporate your orientation program into your overall health and safety program.
As the amendments indicate, the employer’s health and safety program will require provisions for a system for the prompt investigation of hazardous occurrences to determine the root cause(s) and the corrective action(s) needed to prevent a recurrence.
If the required system is not being followed at the time of an inspection by a health and safety officer, this may be a breach of the new legislation and therefore could be subject to an order.
Subsection 8.1(1) states:
What if there is no JHSC or health and safety representative in the workplace? For example, I am an employer with 30 employees in the Province in three separate locations. Because each workplace has less than 20 employees and WorkSafeNB has not required the designation of a health and safety representative because we are considered low risk (see subsection 17(2) of the OHS Act), what is our obligation to consult in the establishment and review of the health and safety program?
If the individual workplaces do not require a JHSC and have not designated a health and safety representative, the provisions of subsection 8.1(1) will be met if they consult with employees at the different locations.
When considering amendments to the Act, the stakeholder committee wanted to define the term "new employee" because some workplaces only provide orientation and training to employees that are new to the company. However, any employee can be exposed to new hazards or changing work environments as a result of a change in job duties or work location. Therefore, employers are required to provide orientation and training to employees meeting the criteria of the definition in the Act.
If their individual work scenario fits the definition, then yes. For example, paragraph 8.2(1)(b), if during the downtime of the seasonal work the employer introduces a new process, then the employee would have to receive orientation in the new process before beginning work on that process.
The differentiation for employees under 25 years of age was intended to capture students attending classes eight to 10 months of the year and returning to the same workplace for summer employment. There may be other situations (such as seasonal work for employees under the age of 25) where this provision would apply.
Liabilities include orders, stop work orders and any fines resulting from prosecutions.
Employers involved in construction and other types of work frequently obtain their employees from union halls or temporary employment agencies. This means that the same employees could be assigned to a different project or workplace being overseen either by the same employer or different employers. Who is responsible for the training and orientation of these workers?
The answer to this question is based on the assumption that the employees have the required basic skills and certification (when required) to do the job (journeyman carpenter, electrician, plumber, etc.) and that the tasks and hazards at the new project site or other workplaces, that the employee will be responsible for and exposed to are similar to previous jobs.
The requirements for training and orientation are as follows:
Yes. Letters, certificates, safety passports, etc., are considered appropriate records.
Orientation is a process designed to assist new employees entering the work environment to develop safe work behaviours. Orientation is specified in the OHS Act as:
In addition, depending on the particular workplace, orientation may also include WHMIS.
Training refers to skills and competencies specific to the job tasks being completed by the employee. It is often hands-on and can include demonstrations and active participation by employees so that supervisors can confirm that the employees understand safe work procedures. The training required for a specific job in a workplace is dictated by the hazards present in those tasks. Employers are required to satisfy themselves that employees have adequate training before allowing them to complete the tasks (for example, lock out training).
In the context of orientation and training, "begins work" refers to when the employee actually starts to complete the tasks that expose them to the hazards associated with the work. It does not refer to when an employee starts getting paid to be present in the workplace.
The legislation on this matter is silent. However, having an employee sign-off that they have received training and orientation would be a suitable and effective means of demonstrating compliance with this provision.
When issuing an order to obtain a written report from the employer, the officer will be required to set out the requirements that will satisfy him/her to lift the order. The mechanism will depend on the nature of the order. For example if the officer requires the establishment of a written code of practice, a physical copy either mailed, faxed or provided in electronic format may satisfy this provision. Should the order require physical modifications of the workplace (the installation of a guard) a picture or written confirmation validated by the JHSC or an employee may meet this requirement.
With respect to subsection 33.1(3) of the OHS Act, there is a requirement for the employer and a member of the JHSC to sign the written report sent to the officer, is it acceptable for the plant manager and the JHSC employer representative to sign the report?
While the provision is not specific on this matter, the intent of the legislation is to provide assurance to the officer that both the employees and the employer were in agreement that compliance with the order had been achieved and that a physical re-inspection would not be necessary. Where it is not practical for the employee representative to sign the written report, the employer can show that employees agree that compliance has been reached by submitting a signed copy of their JHSC minutes showing that the action item has been completed.
It was reported by stakeholders that the two timeframes for reporting under the OHS Act (immediately for some injuries and within 24 hours of an accidental explosion or exposure) created some confusion and unnecessary complexity. The amendments simplify the timeframes and provide a single point of contact for reporting these types of injuries and incidents to WorkSafeNB.
Any burns or lacerations that the workplace’s designated first aid providers are able to adequately treat are not required to be reported under subsection 43(1).
Any unexpected and sudden event or loss of equipment which exceeds the capacity of the workplace to function normally, causing great damage and distress, would be considered catastrophic.
Yes, if a workplace contacts an officer directly to report an incident or injury under subsections 43(1) or (4), it would be considered compliant with the OHS Act.
Paragraph 43(4)(a) would apply for needle-stick injuries once it is verified that the blood of the patient is infected by a biological agent. This means that for the purposes of this situation "immediate reporting" is when the results from lab tests confirm blood contamination.
Admission to a hospital facility means receiving medical attention beyond being treated in an emergency room and being kept for observation to determine whether additional medical attention will be required.
WorkSafeNB recognizes that the status of a patient could change where admission as an in-patient may result. Should this change occur the expectation is that the employer will immediately report to WorkSafeNB.
With respect to reporting under theWC Act, if the employee has sought medical attention and/or has missed time from work because of the injury, you can submit a Form 67 and provided it is faxed or mailed within three days you have met the reporting requirements under the WC Act.
However, if the injury is serious enough to meet the requirements of S. 43 of the OHS Act, reporting within three days with or without a Form 67 would not be in compliance with this legislation as immediate reporting to WorkSafeNB is required.
