Occupational Health and Safety Act

What is the Occupational Health and Safety Act?

The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) is Ontario’s primary legislation for protecting workers against health and safety hazards in the workplace. The OHSA establishes a legal framework for workplace health and safety and sets out the general rights, duties, and responsibilities of workplace parties, including employers, supervisors, and workers.

The OHSA applies to most workplaces in Ontario, although there are some exceptions, and certain workplaces are subject to different occupational health and safety legislation. Employers must comply with the requirements that apply to their workplace and take appropriate steps to protect workers from workplace hazards.

What does the OHSA cover?

The OHSA establishes minimum standards for maintaining a safe and healthy workplace in Ontario. It sets out responsibilities for different workplace parties and provides requirements relating to issues such as workplace hazards, health and safety information, workplace inspections, and worker participation in health and safety.

The OHSA also establishes requirements and processes for addressing workplace health and safety concerns and gives certain powers to Ontario’s health and safety enforcement authorities.

Rather than providing a separate rule for every possible workplace hazard, the OHSA provides a general legislative framework that is supported by more detailed regulations.

What are the regulations under the OHSA?

While the OHSA establishes minimum standards, responsibilities, and authority regarding occupational health and safety, regulations under the OHSA establish more specific standards and rules for safe workplace conduct. Regulations made under the OHSA provide more specific requirements for particular workplaces, hazards, and activities.

For example, Ontario has regulations addressing specific types of workplaces, such as industrial establishments, construction projects, healthcare and residential facilities, and so on. There are also regulations addressing types of work activities, such as when working in confined spaces or around designated substances. 

These regulations provide additional requirements that employers and other workplace parties may need to follow depending on the nature of their workplace and the work being performed. All workplace parties therefore need to consider both the general requirements of the OHSA and any regulations that apply to their particular workplace.

Who has responsibilities under the OHSA?

The OHSA establishes responsibilities for different workplace parties. Employers, supervisors, and workers each have an important role in maintaining workplace health and safety.

Employers have broad responsibilities for protecting workers and maintaining a safe workplace. These include providing information and instruction to workers about the hazards they may encounter while working, taking all reasonable precautions to protect workers, and ensuring that applicable health and safety requirements are followed.

Supervisors have responsibilities relating to the workers they supervise. They must have a thorough understanding of the work they supervise, take appropriate steps to protect workers, and ensure that legislative workplace requirements and safe work practices are followed.

Workers also have responsibilities under the OHSA. These include working in compliance with the OHSA and applicable regulations, using required protective equipment, and reporting hazards or unsafe conditions as required.

The specific duties that apply can depend on the workplace, the role of the individual, and the requirements of the applicable legislation and regulations.

What rights do workers have under the OHSA?

The OHSA provides workers with important health and safety rights. These include the right to know about workplace hazards, the right to participate in workplace health and safety, and the right to refuse unsafe work.

Ontario’s health and safety system is designed to encourage workplace parties to identify and address hazards before they result in injury or illness.

Workers must receive the information, instruction, and supervision they need to work safely. When a real or potential hazard is encountered in the workplace, workers have a duty to raise health and safety concerns through the appropriate workplace processes so everyone else in the workplace can be made aware.

Does every province have an OHSA?

Yes and no. While every Canadian jurisdiction has occupational health and safety legislation, the legislation is not called the Occupational Health and Safety Act in every province or territory.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) is the name of Ontario’s legislation. Other Canadian jurisdictions have their own occupational health and safety laws and regulations, with requirements that can differ from those in Ontario.

Employers must follow the occupational health and safety legislation that applies to the jurisdiction in which their workplace operates.

If your organization would benefit from a compliance review, our Ultimate Guide to HR and Compliance in Canada is a practical resource designed to help you get started.