HRdownloads Blog

Health and safety are essential in all workplaces, and everyone from the owner of the company to middle management to frontline employees plays an important role. Since the topic of workplace health and safety is broad, there are many different aspects to focus on, and implementing it can get confusing. So what exactly do we mean by health and safety? What do they entail from a human resources or management perspective?

We have all been there at some point. An awkward stumble, an untimely fall, or embarrassingly tripping in front of co-workers. And while for some of us taking a tumble in the workplace might only lead to embarrassment, for many others it leads to serious injury. Slips, trips, and falls in the workplace are more common than you may think, so common in fact that, according to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, they are one of the leading causes of workplace injuries, with over 42,000 workers hurt annually in Canada. Falling from heights might be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about falls in the workplace, but in reality, the statistics indicate that workers are more likely to experience an injury from a fall at ground level than from a fall at heights.

The cost of slips, trips, and falls in the workplace is substantial to employers and employees. Injuries resulting from slips, trips, and falls contribute to nearly 20 percent of time-loss injury claims for employers. Workers’ compensation claims cost an employer an average of $11,000 per incident; however, the estimated actual cost can come close to $60,000 when you consider any productivity and business loss, and the cost of replacing an injured worker.

With the chaos of the summer months behind us, it’s time to get back into the usual rhythm of work and take a fresh look at your workplace inspections program. Inspections are vital to preventing accidents and injuries in the workplace and should be used as an opportunity to make the workplace better, not just an item to check off on a list of requirements.

Health and safety inspections are governed by minimum standards defined in occupational health and safety legislation that employers must meet to maintain a safe and healthy workplace. These standards vary by jurisdiction but following best practices and going beyond the minimum requirements proves employers have done their due diligence while creating a culture of safety.

Unforeseen health and safety incidents can happen in any work environment. It doesn’t matter whether you work in an office, a retail store, or a warehouse—every worker is at risk of injuries in the workplace. Many times, however, we don’t think about reviewing or making changes to the health and safety program until after an incident happens.

As an employer, it’s your duty to protect your workers from workplace injuries and provide a safe environment, no matter what the job, and that begins with taking the steps to prevent incidents and proactively manage health and safety hazards. You may have heard the term “due diligence” used about health and safety in the workplace, but what does it actually mean?

An employee asks to speak with you. They are sweating, having trouble breathing, and teary-eyed. They disclose they're having an anxiety attack, and they feel as though their heart will jump out of their chest. What would you do?

Not all leaders or employees can confidently say how they would respond in this situation. However, with the increased visibility of mental illness in the workplace and chronic mental stress changing the adjudication of workers' compensation board claims, employers need to be proactive and prepared to respond immediately if an employee has a mental health crisis in the workplace.

Every employer should be aware that protecting the health and safety of employees is not merely best practice, it is a legal requirement. With changes to health and safety legislation occurring all the time, more and more responsibilities are placed on employers to ensure their employees’ safety in the workplace. These responsibilities are enforced through disciplinary measures which vary across jurisdictions but can include fines and even jail terms. Under health and safety legislation, employers must evaluate, determine, and remove risks of injury in the workplace. However, despite best efforts, workplace injuries still occur, and when they do, employers need to know how to react.

A natural disaster is one of the worst crises any company can face, especially when one prompts a prolonged office closure. The recent wild fires in British Columbia or the flooding in New Brunswick are major examples of this scale of disaster. When natural disasters strike, they can affect every facet of people’s lives, including their work. For many, getting back to work as soon as possible is essential to their personal recovery; your employees need to know when it’s safe to go to work, and need to trust their employers are managing the situation. In the face of a natural disaster, what will your organization do? Do you have a plan for the first minutes? What about the first hours? What happens if the disaster lasts for days, or your workplace is seriously affected?

Alberta employment and health and safety legislation has had a big year. In less than twelve months, significant changes have occurred to the Alberta Employment Standards Code and the Occupational Health and Safety Act, making major updates for the first time in more than thirty years. For employers, great change often comes with great responsibilities. With these changes already in effect, policies should be updated, procedures should be changed, training should be assigned, and employees should be informed.

A natural disaster is one of the worst crises any company can face, especially when one prompts a prolonged office closure. The recent weeks-long flooding across Canada is a dramatic example of just such a disaster. When natural disasters strike, they can affect every facet of people’s lives, including their work. For many, getting back to work as soon as possible is essential to their personal recovery; your employees need to know when it’s safe to go to work, and need to trust their employers are managing the situation. In the face of a natural disaster, what will your organization do? Do you have a plan for the first minutes? What about the first hours? What happens if the disaster lasts for days, or your workplace is seriously affected?

Family violence is a serious problem in Canada. The most recent edition of Statistics Canada’s profile on family violence states that over one quarter of all violent crimes that were reported to police resulted from family violence. According to the Department of Justice, family violence is any form of abuse, mistreatment, or neglect that a child or adult experiences from a family member, or from someone with whom they have an intimate relationship. It can include physical, sexual, emotional, or financial abuse, and also neglect, and rarely occurs in singular instances but instead as a pattern of behaviour.