New, young worker safety blitz results in 9,799 orders in Ontario industrial sector

456 orders issued in health-care workplaces

An Ontario safety blitz focused on new and young workers in industrial and health-care workplaces resulted in 218 stop-work orders from May to August.

New and young workers in Ontario are four times more likely to be injured during their first month of employment than at any other time, according to the Ontario Ministry of Labour.

From May 1 to Aug. 31, 2011, ministry inspectors conducted a workplace inspection blitz focusing on new and young workers in the industrial and health-care sectors to enforce compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and its regulations.

The goal of the blitz was to check that new and young workers were properly instructed, trained and supervised in accordance with the requirements of the OHSA and met the applicable minimum age requirements prescribed for the work they are doing.

Ministry inspectors focused on workplaces where many new and young workers are employed, including the service sector, transportation, municipalities, logging, farming operations wood and metal fabrication, long-term care homes, retirement homes, nursing homes and intensive support residences or group homes.

Of the orders issued during this blitz under the industrial program, most related to:

•General duties (includes duties of employers, supervisors and workers under section 25 of the OHSA)

•Requirements relating to health and safety representatives and committees (OHSA sections eight and nine)

•Violence and harassment (OHSA section 32)

Industrial

From May 1 to Aug. 31, 2011, inspectors conducted 3,458 blitz-related visits to 2,847 industrial workplaces and issued 9,799 orders under the OHSA and its regulations, including 214 stop-work orders.

Of the 9,799 orders issued in the industrial sector, 8,625 (88 per cent) were time-based, 862 (8.8 per cent) were orders for immediate compliance, 98 (one per cent) were orders for compliance plans and 214 (2.2 per cent) were stop-work orders.

Non-compliance noted by inspectors involved training, orientation and supervision, personal protective equipment and the internal responsibility system.

Health care

From May 1 to Aug. 31, 2011 inspectors conducted 186 visits to 164 health-care workplaces and issued 456 orders under the OHSA and its regulations, including four stop-work orders.

Of the 456 orders issued in health-care sectors, 423 (92.8 per cent) were time-based, 19 (4.2 per cent) were orders for immediate compliance, eight (1.8 per cent) were orders for compliance plans and four (0.4 per cent) were stop-work orders.

Latest stories