Ministry Of Labour

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Ministry Of Labour
everything you wanted to know, but were afraid
to ask
Don Hall Regional Director Western
Region September 2009
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Introduction

• Overview of the MOL
• MOLs 3 main programs
• Western Region profile
• Where we are at today
• Whats on the horizon

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The Ministry of Labour

• The MOL currently employees approx. 1500
  employees and has a budget of 174 million
• Organized into 3 Divisions
• Operations Division (981 staff and 107 million)
• Internal Administrative Services Division
• Policy, Program Development and Dispute
  Resolution Services
• The OPS Division has 4 regions
• Central
• Eastern
• Western
• Northern

Yellow Northern Region Green Western
Region Orange Central Region Blue Eastern
Region
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Programs Delivered

• The MOL delivers three main programs
• Occupational Health and Safety
• Occupational Health and Safety Act and
  Regulations
• Employment Practices
• Employment Standards Act and Regulations
• Labour Relations
• Labour Relations Act
• Dispute Resolution/Mediation Services
• Ontario Labour Relations Board

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Occupational Health and Safety

• Ontarios Occupational Health and Safety Act
  (which is 30 years old on October 1) provides the
  legislative framework for what we refer to as the
  Internal Responsibility System.or the IRS.
• Internal within the workplace
• Responsibility shared responsibility for the
  health and safety of the workplace
• System organized, inter-connected,
  communication, collaboration,
• There are regulations under the OHSA that set
  health and safety standards by sector
• Industrial
• Construction
• Mining
• Health Care
• Education
• Farming

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Occupational Health and Safety Farming

• The LTI rate for the sector is above that of the
  average (1.7) for the province
• Stake holders engagement is through to the
  Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). TAC consists
  of representatives from the MOL and the Ministry
  of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Farm
  Safety Association, WSIB and the Labour Issues
  Coordination Committee
• The Occupational Health and Safety Act applied to
  the farming sector as of June 30, 2006
• Proactive inspections of farming operations began
  at the start of the 2008/09 fiscal year
• The MOL continues to work with representatives of
  the farming community in developing their
  understanding of the OHSA and the activities of
  the MOL

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Employment Practices

• Administration and enforcement of the Employment
  Standards Act (ESA)
• The Employment Standards Act (ESA) 2000 sets
  minimum standards for wages and conditions of
  employment in Ontario.

ESA Core Standards

• Hours of Work
• Overtime Pay
• Vacation Pay
• Termination Notice / Pay
• Reprisals

• Minimum Wage
• Public Holiday Pay
• Leaves of Absence
• Severance Pay

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Employment Practices contd

• ES Program is delivered through investigations
  and inspections
• Investigations are usually started in response to
  a complaint, on an approved form by an employee,
  former employee or group of employees.
• Proactive inspections are also conducted.
• Role of an Employment Standards officer
• Investigate claims or conduct inspections.
• Can conduct claims investigation by telephone,
  written correspondence, visit employers premises
  or require attendance at decision-making meeting.
• Bound by rules of natural justice
• Duty to act fairly, objectively, consistently,
  impartially.
• Officers may
• Require records for inspection
• Enter premises without warrant
• Require employers to post a notice or report,
  e.g., field visit report.

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Employment Standards contd

• Enforcement
• Employers who violate the ESA can be ordered to
• Comply with the ESA
• Pay an employee the amount of wages owing up to a
  maximum of 10,000
• Pay an administrative cost
• Reinstate an employee
• Financially compensate an employee (no maximum
  dollar amount)
• Pay a penalty (Notice of contravention)
• 1st offence - 250 per affected employee
• 2nd offence - 500 per affected employee
• 3rd offence - 1000 per affected employee
• For More Information
• Employment Standards Information Centre
  1-800-531-5551 or TTY 1-866-567-8893
• Visit www.labour.gov.on.ca for
• Your Guide to the ESA, 2000
• fact sheets
• brochures in 23 languages
• WorkSmartOntario www.worksmartontario.gov.on.
  ca/scripts/default.asp

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MOL Main Programs contd.
Labour Relations

• Administers the Labour Relations Act to promote a
  stable labour relations climate
• and harmonious workplace relationships in the
  province.
• The Labour Relations program consists of
• Ministry mediators who provide mediation and
  conciliation services to assist parties in the
  settlement of collective agreements.
• Legal staff who provide legal support to the
  Ministry of Labour, other ministries, the
  Government and the public, on a broad range of
  labour relations issues.
• And is supported by the
• Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) - mediates
  and adjudicates disputes under the Labour
  Relations Act, 1995, as well as a variety of
  other labour-related statutes (including appeals
  of orders issues by occupational health and
  safety inspectors and employment standards
  officers).

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Western Region
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Western Region
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Western Region
Regional Director Don Hall
Program Manager CHS Hamilton
Issues Management / Manager OHS Contact Centre
Program Manager ES London
Program Manager IHS Hamilton West
Regional Program Services Manager
Program Manager CHS Kitchener Waterloo
Program Manager ES Hamilton West
Program Manager IHS Hamilton East
District Office Manager Windsor
Program Manager CHS London
Program Manager ES Hamilton East
Program Manager IHS London
Program Manager IHS Niagara
Program Manager IHS Bluewater
Program Manager IHS Kitchener
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Today
OHS

• Ontarios 2008 Workplace HS Statistics
• 78 deaths from traumatic injuries and other
  immediate causes
• 6 young workers (under 25)
• 4 women
• 257 deaths from occupational diseases (allowed
  claims)
• 241,571 injuries and diseases (allowed claims)
• 78,256 lost time injuries
• 163,315 non-lost time injuries
• Lost time injury (LTI) rate 1.7 per 100 workers
• Average cost of a Lost Time Injury 106, 500
• Direct cost 21,300 (WSIB premiums)
• Indirect costs 85,200 (includes re-hiring,
  re-training, lost productivity)
• Annual economic cost of LTIs 8.6 billion
• direct 1.7 billion
• Indirect 6.9 billion
• Source WSIB and MOL

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Today
OHS contd.

• Why should we care?
• Workplace injuries and illnesses lead to large
  costs to workers and to businesses
• Large pain and suffering cost
• Large human capital cost
• Large economic cost
• Impacts morale and productivity
• The good news is that all these costs are
  avoidable
• Demographic changes
• Older workers greater impact of injuries and
  slower recovery
• Young workers higher risk of injury
• New workers higher risk of injury
• Economic changes
• Shift to service economy, contracting out,
  globalization
• Evolution of workplace hazards
• Ergonomics
• Violence
• Pandemic infections

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Today
OHS contd.

• Ministry of Labour Activities
• Field Capacity 430 HS inspectors
• Field Activity 2007/ 08
• 101,275 Field visits
• Proactive 76,561
• Reactive 24,714
• 176,669 Orders issued
• 2004 2008 The High Risk Strategy
• 2008 onwards Safe At Work Ontario

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Today
OHS contd.

• A New Strategy
• Safe At Work Ontario builds on the ministrys
  2004-2008 strategy, and represents an evolution
  from an enforcement-based program towards a
  compliance-focused program with three main
  elements
• Enforcement
• Compliance, and
• Partnerships
• Safe At Work Ontario focuses on sector hazards
  and on the development of a Health and Safety
  Culture with the goal of contributing the
  continued reduction of fatal, critical and lost
  time injuries
• Contributes to a level playing field, reduced
  burden on health care system, cost avoidance for
  employers
• Under this new direction, the ministry identifies
  and engages workplaces based on a variety of
  factors such as
• their health and safety record,
• history of non-compliance,
• the presence of health and safety hazards
  inherent to the activities of the business.

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Today
OHS contd.

• Safe At Work Ontario (contd)
• Cross-sectoral hazard focus i.e.
  Musculo-skeletal Disorders (MSDs)
• Blitzes
• Web based compliance tools

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Blitzes 2009/10
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Today
OHS contd.

• What can you do about health and safety in your
  workplace?
• Be a Health and Safety champion
• Promote a corporate commitment to Health and
  Safety
• Know the HS hazards in your sector and your
  business
• Implement mitigation strategies
• Train your workforce (consult MOL and WSIB
  websites and your Health and Safety Association)
• Investigate root causes of HS incidents and
  implement changes

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Today
Employment Standards
The Employment Standards Program is often the
only mechanism available to Ontarios most
vulnerable workers seeking to be treated fairly
at work.

• Claims are increasing due to e-claim filing,
  successful outreach and education activities, and
  the current economic conditions.
• The Program investigated and resolved more than
  21,000 claims last year.
• Over 29 million annually is owed to employees,
  who are also consumers non-compliance negatively
  impacts Ontarios economy.

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on the horizon
Violence and Harassment in the Workplace Bill
168

• Overview of Bill 168
• No current requirements in Occupational Health
  and Safety Act (OHSA) specifically refer to
  workplace violence or harassment
• Bill 168, The Occupational Health and Safety
  Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the
  Workplace), 2009, was introduced April 20, 2009.
• If passed, Bill 168 would amend the OHSA to
  enhance protections against workplace violence
  and address workplace harassment.
• The proposed amendments would apply to all
  Ontario workplaces to which the OHSA currently
  applies.
• The proposed amendments would be broad enough to
  capture workplace violence and harassment from
  any person in the workplace (strangers,
  customers, clients, patients, co-workers
  domestic/intimate partners).

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Horizon
Violence and Harassment in the Workplace Bill
168

• Key Elements of Bill 168, if Passed
• Include definitions of workplace violence and
  workplace harassment.
• Require employers to prepare policies with
  respect to workplace violence and workplace
  harassment, and to develop and maintain programs
  to implement them.
• Require employers to assess the risks of
  workplace violence that may arise from the nature
  of the workplace, the type of work or the
  conditions of work, and include measures and
  procedures to control them in the workplace
  violence program.
• Require employers who are aware, or who ought
  reasonably to be aware, that domestic violence
  may occur in the workplace to take every
  precaution reasonable in the circumstances to
  protect a worker who is at risk of physical
  injury.
• Specify that existing duties on
  employers/supervisors to provide
  information/advise workers include providing
  personal information about a risk of workplace
  violence from a person with a history of violent
  behaviour.
• Extend the right to refuse work to a worker who
  has reason to believe that workplace violence is
  likely to endanger him/herself. The limited right
  to refuse of certain workers would continue.
  Reprisals by the employer would continue to be
  prohibited.
• Require that joint health and safety committee,
  etc. be notified if a worker is disabled or needs
  medical attention due to workplace violence.
• Proposed amendments would come into force six
  months after Royal Assent.

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Horizon

• Temporary Help Agency Legislation Nov. 6th
• Amendments to the ESA that will prohibit
  temporary help agencies from charging fees to
  employees for things such as resume writing and
  interview preparation.
• Requires agencies to provide information to
  employees about their assignments including pay,
  schedules, and job descriptions.
• Establishes new rules for calculating termination
  and severance entitlements for temporary
  employees.
• Extends reprisal provisions to client businesses.
• A regulation has already been passed which
  removes the elect to work exemption for public
  holidays.