It’s safe to say that most Canadian workers and employers are familiar with WHMIS training. They may also know about some of the other required safety training programs that Canadian workers have to complete. But did you know that there are some workplace training requirements that are specific to individual provinces? One of the most notable is in Ontario. Worker Health and Safety Awareness Training is required to be completed by every worker in Ontario. Moreover, the responsibility for ensuring workers get this training is an employer’s.

Let’s explore the specific requirements in more detail.

The Legislation

Since July 1, 2014, employers in Ontario have been required to ensure that all their workers and supervisors complete a basic occupational health and safety awareness training program. This was a result of the new regulations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), O. Reg. 297/13.

Ontario Regulation 297/13 requires that employers:

• Ensure that their workers complete basic health and safety awareness training as soon as reasonably possible.
• Ensure that supervisors complete a basic health and safety awareness training program within one week of working as a supervisor.
• Keep records of the training completed by their workers and supervisors.
• Provide their workers and supervisors with written proof of completion of training if requested by the worker or supervisor.

Ontario Regulations 297/13 Training Requirements

The most common questions about Ontario Worker Health and Safety Awareness training relates to its requirements and what needs to be included in the training.

Who Needs Worker Health and Safety Awareness Training?

Unlike some other training programs where there is a bit of uncertaintly to who requires them, the answer is easy in this case. Every worker in the province of Ontario needs to take a basic health and safety awareness training program. This includes workers in all industries and occupations.

When Do Workers Need the Training?

As you read above, one of the requirements is to ensure that workers receive the training as soon as reasonably possible. This is extremely important. A worker is much more likely to get injured if they start working without having the required information about how to stay safe. It’s always best to ensure workers have this training before they start work and are exposed to hazards.

What Needs to Be Included in the Training?

The Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act and Regulation O. Reg. 297/13 outline what information needs to be included in health and safety awareness training. This includes:

• A worker’s duties, rights, and responsibilities under the OHSA.
• The duties and responsibilities of employers and supervisors under the OHSA.
• The roles of health and safety representatives and joint health and safety committees under the Act.
• Common workplace hazards.
• The roles of the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), and Health and Safety Associations
• Information and instruction requirements set out in the WHMIS regulation
• Occupational illness, including latency.

The requirements are the minimum content that needs to be included in worker health and safety training. It’s always recommended to include additional information that helps workers to assess and mitigate hazards throughout the course of their duties.

Enforcement

The Ministry of Labour enforces the Occupational Health and Safety Act, including O. Reg. 297/13. Employers who have not ensured their workers and supervisors have received basic health and safety awareness training are in contravention of the Act. This means that they can be subjected to receiving orders and even monerary penalties.

It’s always best to simply stay compliant and provide the training. Not only to avoid costly conqequences, but more importantly, to ensure that your workers have the information that they need to stay safe.

Providing the Training

So what’s the best way to stay compliant and provide the training to your workers?

While there are requirements for what needs to be included in the training, as we reviewed above, the legislation does not indicate a method for how the training must be provided. This is actually great news because it means that you don’t need to stick with traditional time-consuming training methods.

Online Ontario Worker Health and Safety Awareness Training

Online training has become the most popular method that Ontario employers use to provide safety awareness training to their workers. The benefits with online training are numerous, with convience and flexibility being the most notable.

Traditional training methods require lengthy classroom sessions that can disrupt your operation. Online training is much more efficient. This means it takes much less time to complete than traditional training. What used to take four or more hours in a classroom can take as little as one to one and a half hours online. Moreover, your workers learn at different paces, so sometimes classroom training can leave some learners behind.

OnlineWHMIS.ca has an excellent online training solution so that you can quickly train your Ontario workers and get compliant fast. You simply purchase the number of registration you need and then enroll your workers into the training. This literally takes just a few minutes. Then your workers complete the training at the most convenient time, without disrupting your operation.

Throughout the process, you’re able to view training progress and status from a handy group leader account. Once a worker finishes the training, they are awarded a certificate instantly. Not only is their certirficate stored in their training account, but your group leader account as well. This means that all record-keeping is done for you automatically. You can view and print the certificates at any time.

You can learn more about our Worker Health and Safety Awareness training by clicking this link. Worker Health and Safety Online Training Program

If you have any questions about what we offer, feel free to contact us. We’re always happy to here from you🙂