Three sets of related regulations in Saskatchewan will soon be one.

Prior to April 1, 2021, the province’s occupational health and safety (‘OHS‘) regulations under The Saskatchewan Employment Act include all of the following:

1) The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 1996, RRS c O-1.1 Reg 1 (the ‘1996 OHS Regs‘);

2) The Occupational Health and Safety (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System) Regulations, RRS c S-15 Reg 6 (the ‘WHMIS OHS Regs‘); and

3) The Occupational Health and Safety (Prime Contractor) Regulations, RRS c S-15.1 Reg 2 (the ‘Prime Contractor OHS Regs‘).

Fortunately, as of April 1 of this year, there will be a one-stop shop for all things related to OHS regulations: The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 2020, RRS S-15.1 Reg 10 (the ‘2020 OHS Regs‘).

This new set of regulations combines all three of the former regulations into one set’the 1996 OHS Regs make up the overall framework of the new regulations, while the WHMIS OHS Regs and the Prime Contractor OHS Regs have been added as Part 22 and Part 33 of the new regulations, respectively.

Some of the additional substantive changes implemented in the 2020 OHS Regs are as follows:

1) adoption of the Canadian Standards Association (‘CSA‘) standard Z2110-17, which provides minimum first aid requirements to be met, including:

a) undertaking a workplace first aid risk assessment conducted by a competent person;

b) maintaining first aid kits with supplies and equipment corresponding with the risk level identified by the risk assessment; and

c) providing first aid personnel on the worksite/workplace corresponding with the risk level identified by the risk assessment and the number of workers (s. 5-3 of the 2020 OHS Regs);

2) repealing Tables 9 through 12 of the 1996 OHS Regs, since these requirements are already established in the CSA standard (Appendix to the 2020 OHS Regs); and

3) removal of the exemption from the blasting requirements for workers doing seismic exploration (s. 26-1 of the 2020 OHS Regs).