Canadian Safety Reporter - sample

March 2018

Focuses on occupational health and safety issues at a strategic level. Designed for employers, HR managers and OHS professionals, it features news, case studies on best practices and practical tips to ensure the safest possible working environment.

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7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018 News | March 2018 | CSR life or safety" because of contra- band. CSC reviewed the situation and found there was no indica- tion of any specific harm being contemplated against a staff member and there was no evi- dence the snips made it through the metal detection and searches at the access points to the up- holstery shop, so conducting a disruptive s. 53 search was un- necessary. A federal ministerial delegate than conducted an in- vestigation and determined the missing thread snips constituted a danger under the code as they would constitute a serious threat to the life or health of a correc- tional officer if in the hands of an inmate who wanted to do harm. The delegate ordered CSC to protect its employees from the danger immediately. CSC appealed the direction, arguing there was no elevated risk of danger beyond what would normally be expected in the course of a correctional offi- cer's job and therefore no reason to refuse work. The Canada Occupational Health and Safety Tribunal noted that the code defined dan- ger as "any hazard, condition or activity that could reasonably be expected to be an imminent or serious threat to the life or health of a person exposed to it before the hazard or condition can be corrected or the activity altered." When the thread snips went missing, circumstances that were out of the normal rou- tine resulted — special searches were conducted, certain inmates interviewed and frisked, cells were searched, and special ef- forts were made to gather intel- ligence. In addition, the snips were classified as a restricted weapon that was "a particularly frightening instrument if it is in the hands of someone who in- tends to use it as a weapon," the tribunal said. The tribunal found that the condition created by the miss- ing snips didn't create an immi- nent threat, as if an inmate did in fact take them, it was unlikely he would use them in short or- der. However, a serious threat is not necessarily imminent, and the correctional officers who refused work didn't argue that there was an imminent threat. Rather, the worry was that the snips were in the general popula- tion and could be used sometime in the future, said the tribunal. While it was possible the snips were simply misplaced in the upholstery shop and weren't in the possession of an inmate, it couldn't be proven any more than the concern that they were out there. Since the code's purpose is to pre- vent workplace accidents and injuries, the tribunal couldn't rule out the possibility that the snips were taken and hidden for future use by an inmate or the possibility a correctional officer could be injured by them. As a result, the tribunal determined "a condition existed in the (of- ficers') workplace that consti- tuted a danger to them, within the meaning of the code." The tribunal recognized that CSC took measures in response to the situation including a mod- ified routine and special search- es, but it still had a final option — the s. 53 search — that could have helped it find the missing snips. By refusing to conduct such a search, CSC didn't take all necessary measures to elimi- nate or reduce the hazard in its workplace, said the tribunal in upholding the direction to rea- sonably protect its employees. For more information see: • Correctional Service of Canada v. Laycock, 2017 CarswellNat 6813 (Can. OH&S Trib.). Employer didn't take all measures to mitigate danger Corrections Canada < pg. 3 NOMINATIONS CLOSE JUNE 1 Is your safety team a lineup of super stars that are always motivating the workforce to make safety a priority? Throw your hard hat in the rink for Canada's Safest Employers awards. Now in its 8th year, the awards recognize the safest companies from coast to coast. Awards for Wellness, Psychological Safety, Young Worker Safety and Canada's Best Health + Safety Culture also available. www.safestemployers.com CELEBRATING SAFETY MVPs EMPLOYERS SAFEST 2018 CANADA'S Presented by Strategic Partner Platinum Sponsor Bronze Sponsor Gold Sponsor Silver Sponsor Silver Sponsor Bronze Sponsor EXPERTS IN OCCUPATIONAL TESTING Reception Sponsor

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