Small Business, Big Responsibilities: The Employer’s Role in Worker Health and Safety

Regardless of organizational size, ensuring strong workplace health and safety practices is the right thing to do. Small and medium-sized businesses in Canada have the same legal duties as any other employer to protect workers against injuries and illnesses on the job. Whether you employ a team of five or 500 people, it is your responsibility under the law to take every reasonable precaution to ensure the health and safety of your workers. 

Implementing a formal health and safety program can help you meet your legal requirements and help reduce injuries and illnesses while positively boosting other aspects such as morale, engagement and well-being. Research shows workplaces that demonstrate a commitment to health and safety experience higher worker productivity, better retention and improved recruitment. 

Start with a policy 

Step one is to have a health and safety policy in place.  It defines your organization’s commitment and approach to maintaining a safe and healthy workplace, and it supports the promotion of your health and safety program. 

A policy consists of statements and values that define, promote, and guide your overall health and safety program. Policies need to follow the health and safety laws of your province or territory, address workplace hazards, and mention activities that help reduce the risk of hazards and harm to your workers.  

Put your policy into action  

You’ve signed off on your policy and shared it with your workers. It’s time to put it into action with a health and safety program.  Programs outline the “how”, for example the exact steps to take to identify, assess, and control workplace hazards along with procedures for the continuous evaluation of the process itself. 

Step 1:

Start by identifying hazards in your workplace and assessing the risk to your workers. Talk with your team and review incident and injury reports, which can help you pinpoint specific health and safety concerns to address.  Online tools, such as the CCOHS Business Safety Portal, can help you get started with hazard identification and assessment by tailoring content to your industry and jurisdiction. 

Step 2:

Introduce hazard control measures to manage each hazard in your workplace. Be sure to consider all aspects of well-being, including psychological and physical hazards.

Step 3:

Confirm you have incorporated any legal obligations, safe work practices, training, emergency procedures and personal protective equipment needs, where required under your region’s legislation.

Step 4:

Monitor your program and update it regularly to make sure it continues to be effective at protecting your team from harm. 

Seeking health and safety support 

Running your business is your focus and finding the time and resources to meet health and safety requirements can be challenging. But there is help. Using credible resources can help you build a program and maintain it.

Safe work associations in your jurisdiction offer many resources for employers. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) also offers online information and the Safety InfoLine service for direct, confidential answers to your health and safety questions, free of charge to anyone in Canada.

In addition, online tools like the CCOHS Business Safety Portal includes templates, courses, and guides that can help jumpstart your policy and program, while giving you one central spot to collect and access relevant information, files, and records to stay on top of your health and safety efforts – helping you stay ready for a health and safety inspection. 

Whether you conduct your own research, tap into the assistance of a health and safety professional or incorporate online safety services, putting a policy in place, and a program in action to promote and protect your workers’ health, safety and well-being will help them – and your business – thrive.