LIN155 Occupational Health & Safety Act PDF

Occupational Health & Safety Act LIN155 – Electronic Lab & Instrumentation Techniques School of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering Technology (SEMET) Agenda History of Health & Safety OHSA Rights Labour Laws Duties of Employers / Supervisors / Workers Changing Labour Laws...

Occupational Health & Safety Act LIN155 – Electronic Lab & Instrumentation Techniques School of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering Technology (SEMET) Agenda History of Health & Safety OHSA Rights Labour Laws Duties of Employers / Supervisors / Workers Changing Labour Laws Joint Health & Safety Committees Challenge Questions 2 Introduction “The main purpose of the Occupational Health and Safety Act ( OHSA ) is to protect workers from health and safety hazards on the job. It sets out duties for all workplace parties and rights for workers.” OHSA | Ministry of Labour (https://www.ontario.ca/page/occupational-health-and-safety-act-ohsa) Changes to the Act in 1990 and subsequent years continue the evolution of occupational health and safety legislation in Ontario. These improvements are based on our experiences. 3 Health & Safety History Occupational injuries and illnesses have been present throughout history:  Ancient Egypt: stonemasons with respiratory problems  Industrial Revolution: introduction of new materials/ processes (asbestos, oils) The Factory Act of 1884 in Ontario – established vague safety standards (eg. definitions, machine guarding). By the 1900’s, every province in Canada had laws that regulated heating, lighting, ventilation, hygiene, fire safety, and accident reporting. 4 OHSA Worker’s Rights The Royal Commission on the Health and Safety of Workers in Mines was formed by the Ontario government in 1974. Their 1976 report contained a series of recommendations. This commission was the first to articulate the 3 principle rights of workers. These 3 rights still enshrine our current legislation and provides the basis for the OHS programming in Canada. 1. The right to refuse dangerous work without a penalty. 2. The right to participate in identifying and correcting health and safety problems. 3. The right to know about hazards in the workplace. 5 OHSA – Our Basic Rights The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) was created to ensure a safe working environment. It encompasses several regulations to cover various industries, working environments, and hazards. It allows for quantifiable guidelines on exposure to hazards (chemical, physical, biological, safety, ergonomic etc.) It is used in combination with other Acts and Codes to maintain every worker’s basic right: To leave work in the same state they entered. 6 Changing Labour Laws Hoggs Hollow Disaster, ON – 1960 While constructing a tunnel for a water main, 5 workers were trapped 30 ft underground when a fire broke out, smoke suffocated the men, and parts of the tunnel collapsed. Details of the unsafe working conditions and the deaths sparked a public outcry. Immigrant workers banded together to demand fair, safe, and equal treatment at work. This was the catalyst for the Industrial Safety Act of 1964, which focused primarily on workers’ safety for the first time. Image source: https://definingmomentscanada.ca/all-for-9/historical-articles/the-hoggs-hollow-disaster/ 7  Making Safety the Norm Elliot Lake Miner Strike, ON – 1974 Miners were exposed to radiation at uranium mines, and lead, mercury, and asbestos mines were causing respiratory diseases (eg. lung cancer, silicosis) and deaths. Cave-ins, rock falls, and ground burns were common occurrences. About 1000 miners went on strike to protest the conditions. This was the catalyst for development of the OHSA in 1979. The strike also helped change provincial laws governing health and safety in the workplace, and helped institute the Internal Responsibility System. Image source: http://uraha.de/de/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Uran_1_1_uraniumcircit.jpg 8 Law Shape by Tragedy Westray Mine Disaster, NS – 1992 Methane gas ignited underground and killed all 26 miners working in the coal mine. It was known that the mine was unsafe. The accident was the direct result of actions, omissions, mistakes, incompetence, and neglect from the mine’s owners and managers. An amendment to the criminal code (Bill C-45, 2004) now holds the directors of corporations and their senior officers accountable for criminal negligence in the workplace. Image source: http://zululandobserver.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/56/2014/09/zcoal.jpg 9 Internal Responsibility System The Internal Responsibility System (IRS) is the underlying philosophy of the occupational health and safety legislation in all Canadian jurisdictions. Its foundation is that everyone in the workplace – both employees and Supervisor employers – are responsible for his or her own safety and for the safety of co- Employer workers. 10 Enforcement If the Internal Responsibility System fails to address the health and safety issues in a workplace, the Ministry of Labour (MOL) has the authority to enforce the law. Visit MOL website: http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/ Image source: https://www.pwu.ca/about-pwu/links/ontario-ministry-of-labour/ 11 Who is Covered by the Act? Almost every worker, supervisor, employer and workplace in Ontario is covered by the act. 12 Work & Workplaces Not Covered Work done by the owner or occupant, or a servant, in a private residence Farming operation Workplaces under the federal government: Post offices Telecommunication companies Banks Some grain elevators Airlines and airports Trucking, shipping, and railway (Federal workers covered under different law: The Canada Labor Code) 13 The Rights of Workers The Right to Participate: Workers have the right to be a part of the process in identifying and resolving workplace health and safety concerns. The Right to Know: Right to know about any potential hazards to which they may be exposed. This is done through WHMIS. The Right to Refuse Work: Right to refuse dangerous work without penalty. 14 Duties of Employers The Act imposes duties on those who have any degree of control over the workplace, the materials, and equipment in the workplace and direction of the workforce. There is a general duty on employers to take all reasonable precautions to protect the health and safety of workers. 15 Duties of Supervisors Supervisors shall ensure that the workers works in the manner and with the protective devices, measures and procedures required by this Act and the regulations; and The worker uses or wears the equipment, protective devices or clothing that the worker’s employer requires to be used or worn. Advise a worker of the existence of any potential or actual danger to the health or safety of the worker of which the supervisor is aware; Provide a worker with written instructions as to the measures and procedures to be taken for protection of the worker; and Take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances for the protection of a worker. 16 Duties of Workers Work in compliance with the provisions of this Act and the regulations; Use or wear the equipment, protective devices or clothing that the worker’s employer requires to be used or worn; Report to his or her employer or supervisor the absence of or defect in any equipment or protective device of which the worker is aware and which may endanger himself, herself or another worker; and Report to his or her employer or supervisor any contravention of this Act or the regulations or the existence of any hazard of which he or she knows. TO AVOID: Using or operating any equipment, machine, device or thing or work in a manner that may endanger himself, herself or any other worker; or Engaging in any prank, contest, feat of strength, unnecessary running, or rough conduct. 17 Joint Health and Safety Committees A joint health and safety committee (JHSC) is required:  At a workplace at which twenty or more workers are regularly employed;  At a workplace with respect to which an order to an employer is in effect under section 33; or  At a workplace, other than a construction project where fewer than twenty workers are regularly employed, with respect to which a regulation concerning designated substances applies. 18 Duties of JHS Committee Identify situations that may be a source of danger or hazard to workers. Make recommendations to the employer and the workers for the improvement of the health and safety of workers. Recommend to the employer and the workers the establishment, maintenance and monitoring of programs, measures and procedures respecting the health or safety of workers. 19 Composition of JHS Committee A committee shall consist of:  At least two persons, for a workplace where fewer than fifty workers are regularly employed.  At least four persons, for a workplace where fifty or more workers are regularly employed. 20 Challenge Question 1 I am a competent person as defined by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. I……. A. am qualified because I have the knowledge, training, and experience to organize the work and its performance B. have knowledge of any potential or actual danger to health or safety in the workplace C. am familiar with this Act and the regulations that apply to the work 21 Challenge Question 2 A supervisor can be charged personally for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act of Ontario. Yes No 22 Challenge Question 3 An employee comes to you and states that they believe a task is unsafe (using a piece of equipment). Do you….. A. Discuss why they believe the work is unsafe and reach an agreement as to how the issue will be investigated and resolved B. State that you don’t have enough money in your budget to replace equipment – you’ll investigate it in the next fiscal year 23 Summary Health & Safety awareness has a long history. Evidence of efforts go back as far as Egyptian pharaohs and Romans. H&S milestones in Canada: Workers’ compensation programs in 1914, right to refuse work in 1976, WHMIS 1987, and the Westray Bill in 2004. Organized labour and tragedies have helped shape H&S. The health and safety movement today is characterized by professionalization and integration. An H&S team in a large company may include an industrial chemist or engineer, radiation control specialist, industrial safety engineer, occupational nurse, counselor, psychologist. 24 Questions 25 Works Cited The Occupational Health and Safety Act – OHSA http://www.e- laws.gov.on.ca Seneca Polytechnic - Health and Safety - https://www.senecapolytechnic.ca/about/policies/occupational-health-and- safety.html Public Services Health & Safety Association- Public Services Health and Safety Association | Home (pshsa.ca) 26