Business Continuity Management Policy 45-002 | Effective Date: December 6, 2020

Policy

WorkSafeNB is committed to taking all reasonable steps to continue to deliver its key services following an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident. To guide these activities, WorkSafeNB has established a business continuity program to ensure that:

1. The health and safety of WorkSafeNB staff and on-site stakeholders are protected;

2. WorkSafeNB’s assets are protected and secure; and,

3. The services necessary to fulfill WorkSafeNB’s legislated responsibilities are maintained or restored in a timely manner.

In developing its business continuity program, WorkSafeNB adheres to international, national and provincial standards in business continuity planning, and assigns well defined roles and responsibilities to key staff in the event of an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident.

Interpretation

1. WorkSafeNB considers an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident to include:

• Catastrophic loss of any WorkSafeNB office;
• Significant reduction in the availability of WorkSafeNB employees (e.g., as a result of an accident, pandemic, or a strike);
• Substantial failure of WorkSafeNB information technology systems; or
• Extended loss of access to a critical supplier (e.g., public utilities).

2. In conducting its business continuity planning activities, WorkSafeNB adheres to recognized international standards, such as ISO 22301 and Incident Command System, as well as incident or event specific guidelines issued by:

• The Government of Canada;
• The Government of New Brunswick; 
• The Public Health Agency of Canada;
• New Brunswick’s Emergency Management Office; and
• The Office of the Provincial Security Advisor.

3. Aligning with best practices, WorkSafeNB ensures that its business continuity program:

• Outlines procedures for identifying new threats to service delivery and evaluating the level of risk associated with all previously identified threats;
• Includes worst-case scenarios based on threats to service delivery;
• Outlines clear roles and responsibilities of key staff;
• Includes recovery procedures;
• Outlines communication protocols;
• Includes procedures for testing and evaluating plans on an annual basis; and
• Outlines procedures for updating plans when significant organization and/or operational changes take place.

4. WorkSafeNB’s Board of Directors delegates the day-to-day operations of WorkSafeNB to the  President/CEO, including the responsibility for managing the immediate response to an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident. Further, to ensure a timely response:

• The Board of Directors delegates to the President/CEO the responsibility to make the necessary expenditures beyond the approved annual budget; and
• The President/CEO designates, in advance, an alternate to temporarily fulfill the role of the President/CEO if required.

5. Responsibility for business continuity management is shared across multiple WorkSafeNB staff and departments. The roles and responsibilities of the parties involved in business continuity planning and management are as follows:

     President/CEO:

• Is responsible for defining WorkSafeNB’s business recovery objectives;
• Directs significant and material business continuity decisions during an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident.

Finance/CFO:

• Has the general responsibility of administering WorkSafeNB’s business continuity planning process, including consolidating division level plans and managing non-compliance;
• Is responsible for ensuring WorkSafeNB’s business continuity program aligns with international standards, and for regularly testing and updating plans as required;
• As a division of the CFOs office, Enterprise Risk Management is responsible for promoting a corporate culture that values business continuity awareness and emergency preparedness, for proactively identifying and managing risks at all levels of the organization, and for ensuring WorksafeNB’s business continuity program is up to date and regularly tested.

Internal Audit:

• Is responsible for periodically auditing business continuity plans to ensure they align with organizational goals and priorities;
• Recommends amendments to the business continuity program and process.

Division Managers:

• Are responsible for identifying critical business functions in their divisions and developing plans to ensure these functions continue in the event of an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident;
• In accordance with the business continuity plans developed by their Division Managers, Division Executives are responsible for governing business continuity processes within their executive domains, including periodically participating in business continuity planning or training exercises, and calibrating with other executive leads to ensure the durability of key business functions.

WorkSafeNB Staff:

• Are responsible for maintaining a general awareness of WorkSafeNB’s business continuity principles and objectives, as well as knowledge of their personal roles and responsibilities during an unexpected and serious disruptive event or incident.