OHS Regulation The government extended the deadline for comments on the new OHS Regulations to Jan. 10, 2011. A digest of this feedback is now available. Forty-eight stakeholders provided approximately 750 comments.

Law of the Year OHS Fines A bill that increased fines for OHS violations for the first time since 1996 took effect on May 19. The maximum fine is now $250,000 for a first offence but rises to $500,000 for additional offences within five years. …

Law of the Year Distracted Driving The NWT legislature passed a bill amending the Motor Vehicles Act to make it illegal to text or talk on hand-held devices while driving. The law, which lets people drive with hands-free devices used in a hands-free manner, takes …

Enforcement efforts, prosecutions and coroner’s inquests all can lead to recommendations for the implementation of new controls contained in the hierarchy and, in some cases, may lead to changes in the way we work as safety practitioners or the development of new standards or laws. In fact, we have a tremendous opportunity to change the very Social Context of Control by enhancing our communications about tragic workplace events and influencing needed change in society as a whole.

Law of the Year
Traffic Control Persons
As of Jan. 1, workers are no longer permitted to work as traffic control persons (TCP) unless they’ve completed training as prescribed by the WHSCC, which must approve TCP training providers.
 

Other Notable Regulatory Changes
Workplace Smoking
On July1, the province’s ban on …

Law of the Year Distracted Driving On June 6, changes to the Motor Vehicle Act that bar drivers from using cell phones (except when operated in a hands-free manner), texting devices and portable entertainment devices while driving took effect. The new law also prohibits …

Law of the Year Psychological Harassment On Feb. 1, an amendment to Manitoba’s Workplace Safety and Health Regulation took effect that expands the term “harassment” to include psychological harassment, such as bullying, intimidation and humiliation. Employers must modify their existing harassment policies and procedures to …

Law of the Year Work Refusals In May, WorkSafeBC amended its guideline on work refusals to:Define what constitutes an “undue hazard”;Explain the test for determining whether a worker has reasonable cause to believe that an undue hazard exists; andClarify the requirement for further …

Law of the Year Distracted Driving Bill 16, the Traffic Safety (Distracted Driving) Amendment Act, 2010, took effect Sept. 1. It bars drivers from reading, writing or attending to personal hygiene or grooming and holding/using hand-held, portable communication/entertainment devices, such as cell phones, laptops or …

Law of the Year Psychological Health & Safety In June, the Mental Health Commission of Canada announced that it was working with the Bureau de normalisation du Québec and the CSA to develop the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety …