When forming a JHSC in your workplace, the question of the “perfect” number of members is one that comes up time and time again. The quick and easy answer is, that the perfect number of JHSC members is the number…
Category: Occupational Health and Safety (page 3)
Recognizing Violence and Harassment Hazards in the Workplace
Workplace violence and harassment is a serious issue. According to Statistics Canada, 17% of all violence and harassment reports in Canada happened in the workplace. That’s a total of 365,000 workplace violence and harassment incidents occurring in Canadian workplaces every…
Cannabis and the Workplace: What Employers and Managers Need to Know
Recreational cannabis is now legal in Canada, and with that legalization comes a lot of questions for employers and managers. A recent study by Deloitte revealed that 22 percent of the Canadian adult population consumes recreational cannabis at least occasionally,…
Employer’s Responsibilities: Temporary Workers
The use of temporary workers is quite common. In fact, in North America, over three million workers are employed through staffing agencies every week! If that’s not enough to make you believe that tons of employers are using staffing agencies…
How to Select JHSC Members
Workplaces with over 20 people must have an active joint health and safety committee (JHSC) in place—Section 9 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (the Act) makes that clear. But, the JHSC is only as good as its members.…
Even More Questions to Test your JHSC Knowledge!
Even More Questions to Test your JHSC Knowledge! Having a Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) is essential for maintaining workplace safety. While understanding the basics is important, there’s always more to learn about JHSC roles and responsibilities. To…
Keeping it Clean: Desk Hygiene at Work
Most of us sweep and mop our kitchen regularly, and many of us don’t let our dishes pile up or our laundry go un-folded. Yet, there are a surprising number of workers who admit to never cleaning their desks. Some…
Working Alone: Employer Responsibilities
Employers are obligated to keep workers safe. According the Occupational Health and Safety Act s.25(2)(h) they must do this by taking reasonable precautions for safety. This means that employers who have workers that work alone must take special precautions to…
The 411 on Drug Testing at Work
In Canada, drug addiction is considered a disability under human rights legislation, such as the Ontario Human Rights Code. As such, persons who suffer from drug addictions are protected from discrimination on the job. Clear as mud, right? Not so…