49 Facility Safety Programs
Learning Objectives
Demonstrate compliance with the facility OH&S program, emergency preparation, security program, WHIMS.
Introduction
Facility safety programs are based on two foundational programs:
- Canadian OH&S (occupational health and safety) legislation
- Outlines responsibilities of employers and employees
- WHMIS (workplace hazardous materials information system)
- Dictates how to safely handle hazardous materials in the workplace such as chemicals.
Canadian OH&S Legislation
The purpose of Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) legislation is to protect you, the employee, against hazards on the job. It outlines the general rights and responsibilities of the employer, the supervisor and the employee.
The law makes both you and your employer jointly responsible for workplace health and safety legislation.
Each of the provinces and the federal government have their own OH&S legislation. The details of the OH&S legislation vary slightly from one jurisdiction to another but the basic elements are the same.
Most Canadian jurisdictions have a general duty provision in their OH&S legislation which requires employers to take all reasonable precautions to protect the health and safety of employees.
Government’s Responsibilities
Government is responsible for ensuring compliance with health and safety legislation. Responsibilities of government include:
- Developing and enforcing occupational health and safety legislation;
- Designating safety officers who conduct workplace inspections to ensure compliance with the legislation;
- Disseminating information;
- Promoting training, education and research;
- Taking action in case of noncompliance.
Employer’s Responsibilities
Employers are responsible to:
- Establish and maintain a health and safety committee, or cause employees to select at least one health and safety representative;
- Take every reasonable precaution to ensure the workplace is safe;
- Inform employees about any potential hazards and provide training to work safely;
- Provide personal protective equipment and ensure workers know how to use the equipment safely and properly;
- Immediately report all critical injuries to the government department responsible for health and safety;
- Train all employees on how to safely use, handle, store and dispose of hazardous substances; and
- Handle emergencies.
Supervisor’s Responsibilities
Supervisors must ensure that work is done safely. They are responsible to:
- Ensure that employees use prescribed protective equipment;
- Advise employees of potential and actual hazards;
- Take every reasonable precaution in the circumstances for the protection of employees.
Employee’s Responsibilities
Employees are responsible to:
- Work in compliance with the OH&S act and regulations;
- Use personal protective equipment and clothing as directed by the employer;
- Report workplace hazards and dangers.
Employee’s Rights
Employees have the following three basic rights:
- Right to know actual and potential dangers in the workplace;
- Right to participate in workplace health and safety activities through the Health and Safety Committee (HSC) or an employee health and safety representative; and
- Right to refuse unsafe work.
Role of the Health and Safety Committee (HSC)
Health and safety committees are responsible to:
- Act as an advisory body;
- Identify hazards and obtain information;
- Recommend corrective actions;
- Assist in resolving work refusal cases; and
- Participate in accident investigations and workplace inspections.
Work Refusals
An employee can refuse work if he/she has reason to believe that the situation is unsafe to either themselves or their co-workers.
The employee must report to his/her supervisor that he/she is refusing to work and state why they believe the situation is unsafe. The process of work refusal resolution slightly varies from one jurisdiction to another. The following are a summary of steps involved in the work refusal process:
- Supervisor and a HSC member or employee representative will investigate.
- Employee returns to work if the problem is resolved.
- If the problem is not resolved, a government health and safety representative is called.
- Supervisor may assign reasonable alternative work to the employee.
- Inspector will investigate the situation and give a decision.
Quoted from CCOHS, “Foodservice Workers Safety Guide”, 6th edition, published 2013 confirmed current 2016, CCOHS, Hamilton Ontario, Canada
WHMIS (Workplace Hazerdous Material Information System)
WHMIS (pronounced “wimis”) stands for Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System. It is a globally harmonized information system set up to protect all Canadian workers and employers. A hazardous material is any substance that can cause illness, disease or death to unprotected people.
WHMIS provides vital information about any materials that pose a risk or hazard in the workplace. Students may have already been introduced to this system in secondary level science classes.
WHMIS provides employers and workers with information about the hazardous materials they work with on the job. This information is necessary to protect the health and safety of everyone in the workplace.
The WHMIS information system is based on a Canadian law that came into effect in October 1988. It states that everyone has a right to know about the hazardous substances being used in their workplace. It requires suppliers, employers and workers to use the system to identify and safely handle hazardous materials. WHMIS rules apply in every province and territory of Canada. The new WHMIS 2015 is an update to the WHMIS system to standardize it nationally and internationally. The laws related to this new system came into effect in 2016 in Saskatchewan.
People who do not follow the laws on hazardous materials can be charged with an offence and can be jailed or fined if convicted.
Why is it needed?
In our daily lives, hundreds of materials and chemicals have been developed to make our work easier and allow us to make better products. This process uses or produces substances that can be dangerous to people if handled improperly. WHMIS lets us know:
- Which materials are dangerous
- How we can protect ourselves when we handle them
The danger of hazardous materials can come from explosion, fire, skin contact, inhalation or ingestion. The level of danger will usually depend on one or more of the following:
- The amount of pressure (gases)
- How easily the material burns or explodes
- The amount of material involved
- How toxic it is
- How it enters the body
- Its concentration
- How it is used
- The frequency of use
Who developed WHMIS?
Once the need for a national information system was recognized, joint committees of employers, unions and governments developed WHMIS. More recently, the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for hazard identification was developed by the United Nations. WHMIS 2015 is an element of GHS that has been adopted by Canadian and Saskatchewan legislation.
What problems does WHMIS try to solve?
- Unlabelled chemicals in workplaces
- Lack of awareness by employers about the identity and hazard level of the chemicals they are using
- Inadequate information provided by suppliers to employers and workers about the hazard level of the chemicals they are using
- Differences between provinces and territories in the way hazardous materials are handled
The three main parts of WHMIS
WHMIS has three main parts to help identify and handle hazardous materials safely:
- Labels with pictograms are applied to the containers with materials inside. The labels supply vital warning information.
- Safety data sheets (SDSs) are sheets of information stored separately from the material. These sheets give details for handling emergencies, clean ups, and controls for the safe use of the hazardous materials. The law requires employers to have an SDS available for every hazardous material in the workplace.
- Worker education and training programs – Employers must instruct each worker on how to use WHMIS, what hazardous materials are on site, and how to handle them properly. See Regulation 22-4 Worker education and training.
Worker responsibility
Workers have the responsibility to use the system to protect themselves from hazardous materials by:
- Recognizing labels and pictograms
- Checking the hazards
- Following recommended procedures
Accessed at www.worksafesask.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/5.-An-Introduction-to-WHMIS-2015-FINALon July 27, 2022.pdf. “Ready for Work Module 5 WHMIS 2015” published by Worksafe Saskatchewan, www.worksafesask.ca.