The first deadline for compliance with the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) and its regulations is only two and a half months away. By June 1, 2023, federally regulated employers1 that had 100 or more
Following industry standards can help a company comply with OHS requirements for material handling that are broadly written and don’t provide specifics. For example, it could be reasonable to follow
OHS violations can happen even when you try hard to comply. But at least the due diligence defence is there to bail you out. As long as you exercise
You won’t be held liable for violating an OHS law if you can show that you used due diligence, that is, took all reasonable steps to comply with the
An avionics installation worker got fired for faking the injuries she supposedly suffered as a result of slipping on black ice in the company parking lot. Exhibit A was the
Having lost its case against the previous 2-dose mandatory COVID vaccination policy, the union challenged the new 3-dose policy that the long-term care homes operator unilaterally implemented in response to
An airport required safety-sensitive workers to submit to random drug and alcohol testing. The union filed a grievance but the arbitrator rejected it. But the Ontario appeals court said the
A recycling company worker got killed while removing a bin of waste materials to be carted away. MOL inspectors determined that the mechanical safety devices designed to keep the bin
A Canada Post worker accused a fellow letter carrier of sexual harassment and assault. After an internal investigation, a union disciplinary panel dismissed the charges. But the battle was far
Sec. 54 of the Labour Relations Code requires employers to give at least 60 days’ notice before introducing a policy “that affects the terms, conditions or security of employment” of
A rapid transit worker with 8 years of service and no disciplinary record was fired for disabling a safety braking device called a deadman switch. The union claimed the discipline
A WorkSafeBC inspector issued a stop-use order for a storage rack after noticing visible damage to its cross-bracing and vertical members. He also cited the home improvement center operator for
An automotive technician repeatedly complained to his employer about the smoking taking place in the repair shop. But his complaints went unheeded and the technician felt he had to quit
A worker had to undergo post-incident testing after a chemical spill in the bed of the truck she was driving caused some minor equipment damage. The test came back positive
Responding to work refusals in BC just got trickier. While the right to refuse dangerous work is an essential safety protection, it can also be highly disruptive. Responding to a
The court cases most likely to directly affect your OHS program and policies. Key OHS cases from the first 6 months of 2022 addressed issues ranging from the authority of
Since late fall 2021, we have seen a steady flow of arbitration awards emerge in Ontario and British Columbia that consider issues relating to mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies in the
In Lewis v. WestJet Airlines Ltd.1, the British Columbia Court of Appeal certified a class action concerning the alleged workplace sexual harassment of female flight attendants at WestJet Airlines. The decision
A number of arbitration awards dealing with COVID-19 vaccination policies were released in late 2021 and early 2022. While most of these policies were upheld, it remained to be seen
On April 4, 2022, in Fraser Health Authority v British Columbia General Employees' Union, 2022 CanLII 25560, Arbitrator Koml Kandola of the British Columbia Labour Relations Board dismissed the union's grievance respecting
Although vaccine mandates are coming down, the litigation battle continues. There have now been about a dozen cases challenging the legality of a workplace mandatory vaccination policy, all but two
Over the last year, many employers have introduced mandatory COVID 19 vaccine policies into their workplaces. These policies have been heavily influenced by the COVID 19 climate in which they
Alberta Labour Relations Board dismisses unfair labour practice complaint against vaccination policy implemented during statutory freeze period. In Amalgamated Transit Union, Local No. 583 v Calgary (City), the Alberta Labour Relations
On December 9, 2020, just nine months after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a global pandemic, Health Canada authorized the first COVID-19 vaccine for use in Canada.
A machine undergoing servicing unexpectedly started up and seriously injured the worker who was sanitizing the equipment. The employer was fined $100,000 after pleading guilty to failing to ensure that
An employer was charged with 2 OHS violations after a 22-year-old assembler operating an overhead crane suffered serious head and shoulder injuries in a lifting incident. The Sask. court found
A CNESST inspector cited a sewer repair contractor for not shoring up the walls of an excavation of more than 1.2 metres. The contractor argued that the trench was less
“Talk to me like that again and we are going to have a big f**** problem.” This voicemail, which was played in court, was just part of the evidence against
Municipal workers placed on unpaid leave for defying the employer’s mandatory vaccination policy claimed they were the victim of OHS reprisals. Their argument: By disobeying the policy, we were looking
The union contended that the employer violated the collective agreement by unilaterally imposing and then terminating long term care home workers for refusing to comply with a mandatory vaccination policy.
