Experts reviews HSE

Occupational Health and Safety

As an employer, you have an obligation to implement the necessary measures to ensure the health and safety of your employees at work. To better understand the objectives and requirements, while complying with the Canada Labour Code, here are several tips and solutions from our OHS expert

Kathie Roseberry

What is OHS in a company?

Occupational health and safety refer to a multidisciplinary approach that aims to eliminate or limit certain harmful occupational effects/hazards on human beings (physical or mental health-related to occupational health).

OHS’s role is to :

ensure the physical, mental, and social well-being of employees
prevent the risks to which employees are exposed in the workplace
manage the care of workers within the framework of the OHS
maintain workers in a job adapted to their physiological and psychological capacities.

Who manages the OHS in the company?

The OHS is under the responsibility of the workers’ company manager and the trade-union representatives. Depending on the size of the company, there may also be an Occupational Health and Safety Committee composed of the employer and the worker’s representatives and must be supported by management.

Here is the list of the main laws, regulations, and codes related to Occupational Health and Safety in Canada, that the employer must comply with:

Canada Labour Code
Occupational Health and Safety Regulations (OHSR)
Act respecting labour standards (LSA), which dictates the working conditions in Quebec, came into force on April 16, 1980
Act respecting occupational health and safety (AOHS): is a preventive law whose main objective is the elimination of risks and hazards at the source to protect the health, safety and physical integrity of workers (s. 2, AOHS)
Pay Equity Act
Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases (AIAOD)

Also worth knowing: the Accident, Incident and First Aid Register

You can find all the applicable laws on the CNESST website.

What are the benefits of investing in OHS?

OHS can be experienced as restrictive and time-consuming for the employer (even a hindrance). That said, it brings real measurable benefits:

Reduced absenteeism
Improved ability to cope with stress and change
Increased productivity and job satisfaction
Increased retention rate and recruitment
Improved corporate image and culture

This strategy aims to have a positive impact on the company’s performance and on the well-being of employees. These actions promote the company’s image and attractivity.

How do you ensure occupational health and safety?

Prevention is essential to reduce risks in the workplace. The employer can set up a risk management plan with the following objectives:

to identify the main sources of risks and hazards within your company;
to write and share with the personnel, the procedures and the standards applied in the company
to identify and follow the state of the protective equipment to be used and available to all employees;
to verify the application of the monitoring and maintenance measures including the safety of the equipment;
to identify and plan the necessary training.

Discover all the features of the BlueKanGo OHS solution:

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