Description

The goal of the “Occupational Health and Safety Act (OH&SA)” of Ontario is to provide workers and employers the legal framework to make Ontario’s workplaces healthy and safe. The regulations included in the Act set out the rights and duties of all parties in the workplace, establishes procedures for dealing with workplace hazards; and, provides the route for implementation of the law. The OHSA came into force in 1979 and has changed over the years. These changes have strengthened the requirements for occupational health and safety in Ontario workplaces and have reinforced the internal responsibility system (IRS) and the workplace structures, in particular the joint health and safety committees.

A workplace moves at the speed that its stakeholders, supervisors and staff work and making mistakes in the day to day operations of an organization can be fatal. To protect staff members, the OHSA makes it clear that the employers and supervisors have the greatest responsibilities with respect to health and safety in the workplace; however, the employees have an important role to play to ensure that health and safety requirements are met at work. All workplace parties have a responsibility for promoting health and safety in the workplace and a role to play to help the workplace to be in compliance with the statutory requirements set out under the Act.

This course provides participants with a simple yet comprehensive understanding about the rights, duties and responsibilities of both workers and employers; as well as, the particulars about Joint Health & Safety Committees. The fundamentals for sanctioning those who violate the OHS regulations in the workplace are also included in the training.

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this course, participants will have a sound understanding about:

• The definitions included under the OH&S Act
• Occupational Health and Safety legislation that is applicable to Ontario
• The obligations of the business owners in relation to health and safety
• Rights and responsibilities of employers and workers under the OH&SA
• The importance of the internal responsibility system (IRS), and the duties of employers, supervisor and workers
• Identifying common workplace hazards and develop safe work practices to keep workers protected from or not exposed to danger or risk
• Health and safety representation
• How the workplace “Joint Health & Safety Committee” works
• When to involve the employer and where to get additional help

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

By the end of this course, participants should be able to:

• Recognise mandatory health and safety responsibilities for employers and staff
• Understand the importance of observing the three important rights given to workers under the OH&SA: The right to know, the right to participate and the right to refuse work
• Determine ways of meeting common occupational health and safety responsibilities
• Identify hazards and develop safe work practices in the workplace
• Understand the role, duties and powers of the Joint Health & Safety Committee
• Take leadership in developing and implementing an OH&S program
• Exercise due diligence regarding occupational health and safety issues
• Apply strategies to improve the H&S culture within an organisation
• Understand consequences of non-compliance with the OH&SA

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

Anyone who wants to learn about legislation and regulations applicable to occupational health and safety matters in the workplace, including:

Business Owners
Contractors
Front Line Staff Members
HR Managers
Operations Managers
Project Managers
Team Leaders
Team Supervisors
Workplace Managers
Workplace Supervisors