LAWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Fall Protection

Jun 22: The Ontario Ministry of Labour (MOL) proposed a new OHS regulation governing use of rope access at all workplaces the OHS Act covers. Rope access, which current OHS regulations don’t expressly address, enables workers to work from heights using ropes as the primary means of support, work positioning, and fall prevention. Deadline to comment: August 21.

Action Point: Find out how to implement a legally sound Fall Protection Compliance Game Plan at your site.

OHS Enforcement

Jun 15: The MOL announced that it hired 80 new OHS inspectors and 29 new employment standards officers last month. The new recruits are currently engaged “in rigorous training.” They’ll begin addressing employment standards claims in fall 2026 and visiting workplaces in their full capacity in early 2027.

Action Point: Find out how to implement an OHS inspections policy in case inspectors show up at your door.

Respiratory Protection

Jul 1: New OHS regulations took effect making Canadian-made respirators meeting CSA Z94.4.1 and the CSA Certification Program an acceptable alternative to NIOSH approval for filtering respirators in Ontario. Previously, respirators had to be approved by NIOSH or certified by a qualified individual as providing workers protection that’s at least equivalent to a NIOSH-approved respirator.

Action Point: Some version of CSA Z94 is the standard for respirators compliance in most parts of the country. So, making CSA Z94 the standard in Ontario as well should make life easier, especially for Ontario companies that also operate in other provinces and territories. Find out how to implement an effective Respiratory Protection Equipment Compliance Game Plan at your site.

Transportation Safety

Jul 1: Under newly effective Highway Traffic Act regulation changes, drivers from jurisdictions that don’t have driver’s licence exchange agreements with Ontario can get credit for up to 12 months of verified foreign driving experience but must also complete the vision test, knowledge test, G2, and G road tests and wait at least 12 months after completing the G2 test before attempting the G test. These changes will ensure drivers gain Ontario road experience before earning a full G licence.

Transportation Safety

Jul 1: New Highway Traffic Act regulations authorize the Ontario Registrar of Motor Vehicles to place terms and conditions on a Commercial Vehicle Operator’s Registration (CVOR) certificate at any time, rather than having to wait for when a CVOR certificate is first issued or renewed.

Transportation Safety

Jun 26: Ontario permanently increased the posted speed limit to 110 km/hour on Highway 401 from Highway 15 to Highway 16 and Highway 416 from Cedar Grove Road to Highway 401. The same speed limit increase will take effect along stretches of many other provincial highways on July 31, including Highways 7, 115, 400, 402, 403, 416, and 417.

Seasonal Safety

Jun 19: With outdoor activities increasing, Ontario reminded residents to take precautions to guard against tick bites and Lyme Disease risks, such as by wearing long-sleeved shirts, long pants tucked into socks, and closed-toed shoes and using insect repellent with DEET or icaridin.

Action Point: Find out how to protect outdoor workers from tick bites that can cause Lyme disease and other illnesses.

Training

Jun 4: The Skills Development Fund Training Stream is investing nearly $8 million to support training projects for in-demand jobs in critical sectors like mining and the skilled trades in Northern Ontario. This Round 6 SDF funding is expected to benefit more than 7,700 workers in the region.

New Laws

Jun 22: Ontario announced that it’s investing an additional $6 million in Futurpreneur, a national not-for-profit organization that provides aspiring business owners collateral-free loans of up to $75,000. The funding will give nearly 1,000 entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 to 39 access to financing, one-on-one mentorship, networking opportunities and business planning tools. Ontario’s nearly 500,000 small businesses represent 98% of all employer businesses in the province and employ roughly 2.5 million people.

New Laws

Jun 10: Ontario is earmarking $1.6 million to Bernie McGlynn Lumber Ltd. to support a major expansion and modernization project at the company’s sawmill in Mildmay. The investment will more than double the company’s production space, increase output by 47%, create five new good-paying jobs, and support 13 existing positions.

New Laws

Jun 26: The province is consolidating the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) from eight streams to four, starting with the Ontario Workforce Priority (OWP) stream leading to permanent residence. The redesigned OINP will feature stronger eligibility requirements, less duplication, and clearer, more efficient pathways for applicants and employers that better align immigration with labour market needs and address critical workforce shortages across key sectors.

Action Point: Find out whether you must provide multilingual safety training to your workers.

Privacy

Jul 1: New Digital Security regulations take effect requiring Ontario public hospitals, schools, and other public sector entities to implement cyber security programs that include: i. appointment of employee primary points of contact; ii. annual cyber security maturity assessments; iii. submission of cyber security maturity assessment summaries; and iv. “critical cyber security incident” reporting.

Action Point: Find out more about how privacy laws affect workplace safety.

Privacy

Jun 2: Newly tabled Bill 137, the Keeping Our Kids Safe Online Act, 2026, requires the Ontario Minister of Education to establish an Online Safety Advisory Committee within 60 days after the Act takes effect. The Committee would have to submit a report making recommendations on online safety issues to the Minister, who would then have to notify the Assembly of the measures it intends to take to implement the recommendations.

Privacy

Jun 2: First Reading for the Social Media Age Restriction Plan Act, 2026 (Bill 138) requiring the Ontario Minister of Health to develop and implement a plan respecting social media use for people under the age of 16.

Drugs & Alcohol

Jul 1: Ontario amended the Highway Traffic Act to require anyone convicted of impaired driving to install an ignition interlock device for a set amount of time. Once the ignition interlock period ends, these drivers will also be subject to a new six-month zero-tolerance condition, prohibiting them from driving with any alcohol and/or drugs present in their body.

Workers’ Compensation

Jun 26: The Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) finalized revision of its rules governing workers’ compensation coverage of costs incurred by injured workers for independent living. The new rules will affect nine separate WSIB policies—17-06-01 to 17-06-09. Effective date: September 21, 2026.

Environmental

July 20: July 20 is the deadline to comment on a government proposal to amend the Environmental Protection Act and Renewable Energy Approvals (REA) Regulation to enable recognition of the biogenic content in municipal waste as a renewable energy source. The Ministry of Environment is also seeking feedback on a proposal to enable certain Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities to undergo a single environmental assessment and approval process under the REA Regulation.

CASES

Workplace Harassment: Ontario Settles Training School Abuse Victims Class Action for $60 Million

An Ontario court approved the $60 million settlement of the class action lawsuit against the province filed by thousands of individuals for the physical, sexual, and psychological abuse they suffered while placed in provincially operated juvenile detention and reform facilities, aka “Training Schools”, between 1953 and 1984. The Ontario government issued a public acknowledgment and expression of regret. Eligible class members will receive compensation ranging from $5,000 to $100,000, depending on the severity of the harm they suffered [Brown v. His Majesty the King in Right of the Province of Ontario, 2026 ONSC 2880, May 21, 2026].

Action Point: Don’t assume workers will tell you if they’re being harassed. Use the OHS Insider Assessment Questionnaire template to uncover hidden harassment, bullying, and stalking problems at your workplace.

Drugs & Alcohol: Second Failed Drug Test Is Just Cause to Fire Safety-Sensitive Truck Driver

A truck driver who was put on unpaid leave after failing a drug test was allowed to return to work with a written warning after completing education and submitting to six random drug tests over the next 12 months, all of which he passed. Two years later, he tested positive for marijuana again. The driver admitted to casual marijuana use but insisted that it was a one-time incident that would never happen again. But having already given him one second chance, the company decided to cut ties with the driver. The Ontario court found just cause for termination citing the driver’s safety-sensitive job, his signed acknowledgment of receiving training on the company’s drugs policies, and his previous transgression. Nor was disability discrimination an issue since the driver didn’t claim to have an addiction or dependency. Last but not least, random testing was reasonable given that the driver’s route took him into the U.S. and mandatory drug testing for international drivers was mandatory under U.S. law [McCarthy v. Bison Transport Inc., 2026 ONSC 3729 (CanLII), June 26, 2026].

Action Point: Under a 2013 Supreme Court case called Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada, Local 30 v. Irving Pulp & Paper, Ltd., random drug testing is allowed only when workers are safety-sensitive and there’s a documented drug use problem at the particular workplace. But Irving didn’t apply in this case because the driver regularly crossed into the U.S. and random drug testing is required by U.S. law. Find out how to implement a Drugs and Alcohol Testing Policy at your own workplace.

Powered Mobile Equipment: OK to Use Surveillance Camera Footage to Prove Forklift Operator Time Theft

While investigating a lift-truck operator for safety infractions, management reviewed video surveillance footage showing that the operator took longer than authorized breaks. Based solely on this evidence, they terminated him for time theft. The union cried foul, accusing the company of violating the collective agreement provision limiting its disciplinary use of workplace camera footage to safety purposes and expressly barring its use for enforcing productivity standards. The company insisted that it did review the footage for safety purposes. The Ontario arbitrator agreed and admitted the tape into evidence. The collective agreement expressly allowed for use of video footage for safety purposes, the arbitrator reasoned, and included no language “requiring a triggering event [or] limiting the employer to only reviewing circumstances surrounding a triggering event” [Autoliv Canada Inc. v Unifor Local 1941, 2026 CanLII 52472 (ON LA), May 13, 2026].

Action Point: OHS requirements for Powered Mobile Equipment vary significantly by province. And that makes compliance challenging, especially for companies that operate in multiple jurisdictions. Get a handy summary of the PME requirements in each part of Canada.

Fire Safety: Waste Management Company Fined $130,000 for Flash Fire Injuries

Four workers offloading flammable solvents from a vacuum truck into a storage tanker suffered injuries in a flash fire ignited by the idling truck’s air intake. The employer pled guilty to failing to ensure that processes likely to produce a gas, vapour, dust, or fume capable of forming an explosive mixture with air are carried out in an area with no potential sources of ignition. Result: a $130,000 fine [GFL Environmental Services Inc., MOL Press Release, June 8, 2026].

Action Point: Find out how to implement an effective and legally sound Fire Prevention Compliance Game Plan to prevent fires and explosions at your workplace.