Canada Supervisor Health and Safety
Overview
Please review the information below and then return to the Supervisor Health and Safety Awareness course.
Applicable Laws
Occupational Health and Safety Act
Government Office
Workers’ Compensation Board
P.O. Box 757. 14 Weymouth Street
Charlottetown, PE C1A 7L7
General Inquiries: (902) 368-5680)
http://www.wcb.pe.ca
Rights
Of the Worker:
- The right to know about information and issues that affect workplace health and safety
- The right to participate in workplace safety by reporting unsafe or unhealthy work conditions or joining joint occupational health and safety committee
- The right to refuse unsafe or unhealthy work
Duties
Of the Worker:
- Take every reasonable precaution to protect the worker’s own occupational health and safety and that of other persons at or near the workplace
- Cooperate with the employer and with the other workers to protect the worker’s own occupational health and safety and that of other persons at or near the workplace
- Wear or use required protective equipment
- Consult and cooperate with the committee or representative, if any
- Cooperate with any person performing a duty or exercising a power provided under PE law
- Comply with PE law
Of the Joint Committee:
- Cooperate to identify hazards and effective systems to respond to the hazards;
- Receive, investigate and promptly deal with issues respecting occupational health and safety
- Participate in inspections, inquiries and investigations
- Advise the employer on individual protective equipment, devices and safety features that are best suited to the needs of the workers
- Advise the employer regarding safety policy or program
- Make recommendations for the improvement of occupational health and safety
- Maintain records
Joint Committees
Employers with 20 or more regularly employed workers must establish a joint occupational health and safety committee
- It must consist of worker representatives and employer representatives
- Half the members must be selected by the workers or the workers’ union, if any; and half should be selected by the employer
Employers with 5 to 19 workers can designate an occupational health and safety representative
- The representative must not exercise managerial functions
- The representative has the same general duties as joint health and safety committees
Right to Refuse Procedures
Workers have the right to refuse work if they believe that the work is dangerous to them or another worker’s health or safety. If a worker believes that a task or situation is dangerous, they must report the concern to a supervisor immediately. The worker must also go to a safe place within the workplace. The employer may have the worker do other work.