Health & Safety
Workplace Safety
In Ontario, the health-care sector has some of the highest rates of workplace injuries and illnesses – even greater than construction, mining and manufacturing. Yet health-care employers lag far behind their industrial counterparts in addressing occupational health and safety issues.
If workers are not protected from health and safety hazards, patients and the public are not protected either.
Our Labour Relations Officers and Health and Safety Specialists work with Bargaining Units to develop strong committees that drive strong internal responsibility systems needed for positive changes for worker health and safety. We are here to help you deal with workplace safety issues.
If you see a hazard in your workplace, report it to your manager immediately. It is your managers’ and employers’ legal responsibility to act on it.
If the issue is not resolved, a member of your Joint Health and Safety Committee or your Bargaining Unit President can help to escalate the report to senior management and/or the Ministry of Labour. It’s important to raise concerns as high and as quickly as necessary to protect workers.
Joint Health and Safety Committees (JHSC) raise awareness about health and safety issues in the workplace, recognize and identify workplace risks, and develop recommendations for the employer to address these risks.
The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) enforces the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). The ministry does so by sending inspectors to visit workplaces to ensure the OHSA is being followed.
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) is an independent agency of the MLITSD. It provides compensation to workers injured or made ill on the job.
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) is designed to protect workers from workplace hazards.
There are duties for all workplace parties and rights for workers. Employers are responsible for establishing safe workplaces and appointing supervisors who know and apply OHS law and principles at work. The Act sets out how to deal with hazards and establishes enforcement for violations of the law. The workplace Internal Responsibility System (IRS) is implicit in the Act and the key to success in workplace health and safety. The Act gives workers the “right to know,” the “right to participate” and the “right to refuse unsafe work.”
The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) is designed to protect workers from workplace hazards.
There are duties for all workplace parties and rights for workers. Employers are responsible for establishing safe workplaces and appointing supervisors who know and apply OHS law and principles at work. The Act sets out how to deal with hazards and establishes enforcement for violations of the law. The workplace Internal Responsibility System (IRS) is implicit in the act and the key to success in workplace health and safety. The Act gives workers the “right to know,” the “right to participate” and the “right to refuse unsafe work.”
While OHSA and its regulations are the main legislation pertaining to health and safety for Ontario workers, there are other provincial and federal laws that regulate occupational health and safety in the province.
Our interactive Ask a Specialist sessions give ONA members and leaders the opportunity to learn directly from staff specialists on a range of topics.
Sessions on Health and Safety issues run virtually, via Zoom, the second Tuesday of each month from 11 a.m. to noon ET.
Don’t miss out on the latest updates, resources and events on the topics that matter to you. Use our eNews Sign Up form and subscribe to our quarterly Health and Safety newsletter.
We use cookies to improve your experience on our website. To learn more, read our privacy policy.
