Is the employer or the worker responsible for paying for Personal Protective Equipment?

Unfortunately the OHS law in Ontario is not clear on who should pay for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). 

OHS law requires the employer to ensure workers wear and use PPE. In some circumstances, the law and OHS regulations requires the employer to provide PPE. The OHS law does not make reference to the responsibility for payment.

For an employer who wants control over the safety standard of equipment being used in their workplace, it makes sense to cover the cost of most PPE. 

In some industries such as construction and trades, workers tend to supply their own tools, equipment and PPE. In a small company, workers may be required to purchase their own protective equipment, either directly from the employer or from a list of suppliers. Large companies and unionized workplaces often specify which PPE will be supplied by the employer and which PPE must be supplied by the worker. For expensive and specialized protective equipment the employer typically covers the cost.

Protective Equipment Cost Practices

• Workers are usually responsible for the cost of safety footwear and clothing. 
• Employers typically cover the cost of other PPE required in their workplace. 

 

Being harassed at work is unacceptable and employers are legally required to protect their employees and manage workplace harassment.

Demeaning jokes or suggestions, bullying, sexual innuendo or intimidating actions, whether spoken, gestured, printed or digitally circulated are all unacceptable behaviours in workplaces. In Canada, laws require employers to manage workplace harassment.

What is workplace harassment? Workplace harassment is unwelcome words or action towards an employee that are offensive, embarrassing, humiliating or demeaning. Harassment may intimidate, isolate or discriminate against the individual. Harassment is different from behaviour that is reasonably expected in a workplace as a part of operating a business.

How can workplace harassment be prevented? Workplace harassment causes employee stress and interferes with worker productivity. A simple prevention strategy is to develop a workplace harassment policy and prevention program and to enforce it. Training about the policy shows that the employer truly believes in protecting its workers and treating them respectfully.  

Who gets harassed at work? Anyone can be harassed in a workplace. Employees, managers, visitors, customers and even owners may be victimized by workplace harassment.

Who are the harassers? Bosses, co-workers, clients, suppliers and even family or friends may be sources of harassment. If someone targets an individual in a workplace with unwelcome words or actions, whether intentional or unintentional, then they are a harasser.

What should an employee do if they are being harassed? If an employee is harassed or observes another person being harassed at work, they should report this to a senior manager immediately. Employees need to know that harassment reports will be taken seriously.

How should employers manage workplace harassment? Supervisors must take immediate steps to stop and manage workplace harassment incidents. When harassment is reported, interventions should include supporting the victim, confronting the harasser and preventing further harassment. Managers must be tactful and maintain confidentiality. The incident investigation and discipline details should be documented for future reference.

A zero-tolerance policy that is actively supported by senior management and supervisors will help develop harassment free workplaces. Employers striving to prevent and manage workplace harassment will empower employees to report harassment and supervisors to enforce company policy and stopping this type of behaviour in the workplace.

Read more about Ontario’s Workplace Harassment Legislation.

Health & safety good news was reported in the recent Occupational Health and Safety in Ontario: 2015-16 Annual Report. 

Fewer injury claims, critical injuries and fatalities were reported in Ontario workplaces in 2015-16. This definitely is health & safety good news! With recent  news stories involving serious employer penalties and worker injuries, it is nice to hear that overall workplace health & safety trends in Ontario are moving in a positive direction. 

The report summarizes Ontario’s OHS strategy. It is a multi-sectorial approach involving the general public and employers, educators, researchers and safety specialists in both private and public sectors. Areas of focus include increasing public knowledge and changing attitudes and behaviour about safety at work. Workplace practices that put employees at risk are being challenged. Workers are understanding that they have the right to be safe while working and employers are doing more to keep employees out of harms way. 

Ontario’s OHS initiatives include new legislation, worker training requirements, enforcement activities and mass media workplace safety marketing . The end result is the health & safety good news of fewer workers getting hurt. Continued improvement will requires creativity, effort and commitment to change from all workplace parties.

These changes may not feel like health & safety good news for business owners and employers. Implementing health and safety and staying compliant with requirements is hard work for employers.  The best approach is to be positive, creative and to spend time learning about why improving workplace safety benefits businesses and their workers. 

Read more about the Occupational Health and Safety in Ontario: 2015-16 Annual Report.

If a worker makes mistakes when performing safety sensitive work, people can get hurt.

Safety sensitive work is tasks or procedures that are part of a job which can cause harm to people if done incorrectly. Many businesses provide specialized services that require their employees to perform tasks that can put the worker, co-workers, customers or the general public at risk of being harmed. Employees performing safety-sensitive work must follow specific work procedures to keep themselves and the people around them safe.

Safety sensitive jobs can be found in many workplaces.  High risk work tasks  include working with dangerous machinery or chemicals at industrial worksites or being exposed to infectious disease or violent situations in a social or health services work environment.  Examples of positions that involve safety sensitive work include drivers, machine operators, health care workers, police officers, and industrial labourers.

A key management responsibility is to carefully plan the work procedures and train and supervise staff. The Plan-Do-Check-Act method is a simple way to approach and maintain high quality safety sensitive work procedures.

Plan – Employers should review the work procedure, planning so the work is designed to have safe outcomes.

Do – The next step involves employee training.  Workers and supervisors must understand the hazards, risks and know how to correctly do the work.

Check – Supervisors must monitor employees performing the work to confirm that it is done correctly.

Act – Retraining, re-design of work procedures and possibly re-assignment of employees not capable of safely performing the work are potential outcomes of supervision activities.

Many factors lead to safety sensitive work incidents such as poor work design, poor supervision or employees unable to competently complete the work. It is important to remember that previously safe work methods may change and become unsafe. If equipment degrades, it can cause safety incidents.  The skills of individuals previously capable of doing the work may change.   Personal or health issues including illness or alcohol or drug use are common reasons why an employee’s may be unable to competently perform their job.

It is a manager’s responsibility to identify and correct situations where work is being performed dangerously.  Since safety sensitive work can cause major injuries including fatalities, it is a good management practice to focus supervision efforts on these high risk work procedures.

To read more about this topic, consider this list of safety sensitive occupations.