Certification Training - Core and Sector-Specific - Parts 1 & 2

Basic Certification Training - Part 1.

Effective, well structured Joint Health and Safety Committees (JHSC's) are often the backbone of a Company's health and safety program, and the addition of specially trained certified members should contribute significantly to the internal identification and resolution of workplace health and safety concerns, and hazards.

Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act was founded on the premise of the Internal Responsibility System, specifying complementary responsibilities for all workplace parties, requiring Joint Health and Safety Committees, and providing fundamental principles for establishing and maintaining those Committees. The Act requires every JHSC to have at least two (2) certified members; one (1) representing the employer, and one (1) representing workers. Many workplaces have chosen to exceed this minimum requirement and certify several, if not all of their JHSC members.

Basic Certification Training is been specifically designed to assist JHSC members to acquire the specialized knowledge and skills to identify workplace safety hazards and concerns; to assess and evaluate these concerns and hazards, and to recommend reasonable controls, remedies and solutions to the employer. There are five (5) core elements to Basic Certification training:

• Health and Safety Legislation
• Workplace Safety and Health
• Joint Health and Safety Committees
• Workplace Inspections
• Conducting Accident Investigations

Certification Training can be taught at a pace that suits the particular needs of your members and workplace, usually requiring from sixteen (16) to twenty-four (24) hours of study and instruction. H.E.L.P. Safety Services Inc. has satisfactorily facilitated and trained many successful Basic Certification participants, and we will do so right at your workplace. We are always prepared to accommodate busy workplace schedules, and offer evening and weekend scheduling in addition to normal weekday scheduling.

All course material is provided in binder format, as well as reference material including:

• The Occupational Health and Safety Act
• Regulations for Industrial Establishments
• Ministry of Labour's Guide to the Act
• Ministry of Labour's Guide to Joint Health and Safety Committees
• WHMIS Regulation, and WHMIS Guide to the Legislation

Let us handle all participant and employer registrations, monitor participant evaluations, and successfully guide you and your members to completion of their Basic Certification

Recently the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) sent correspondence to all Ontario employers announcing the new requirements for "Workplace-Specific Hazard Training" for JH&SC certified members, and proclaiming December 31, 2001 as the compliance date for this Phase 2 Certification -requirement. The Ministry of Labour has in turn announced that compliance with these new provisions will be enforced across the Province as of January 1, 2002.

Joint Health and Safety Committees in Ontario workplaces currently require at least two (2) certified members - one (1) employer member and one (1) worker member. Certification was originally legislated in 1991, and required members to participate in training programs of up to three (3) weeks in duration. This program was revised in 1996 with the introduction of the new two-part Certification format, starting with Part I - Core (Basic) Certification Training, and to be followed by Part 2 - Sector Specific Training, now introduced as Workplace-Specific Training.

H.E.L.P. Safety Services Inc. has successfully trained and facilitated a significant number of Core (Basic) Certification Training participants, providing committee members with the fundamental knowledge to identify hazards, assess their exposure, and recommend appropriate corrective action and controls. Certification - Part 2 additionally requires employers to perform a workplace analysis to identify hazards, prepare an assessment of the exposure, and provide training to certified members respecting the hazards.

An employer must conduct a Workplace-Specific Hazard Training "Needs Assessment" to identify all the hazards in your workplace that may affect a worker's health or safety, This needs assessment should be accomplished by means of a comprehensive inspection of the workplace, and by consulting additional sources or information such as:

• Chemical inventories and M.S.D.S.'s;
• W.S.I.B. claims and reports;
• Accident, illness and injury records for your workplace and the industry;
• Committee meeting minutes, recommendations, inspections & investigations,
• Hygiene sampling test data;
• Ministry of Labour orders & compliance status;
• Near-miss reports;
• Work-flow or process-flow information;
• General observations, & workers with experience or knowledge of the hazards.

Based on your identification of all the hazards in your workplace and determination of the level of concern for each, training on the significant hazards identified in the workplace is required for completion of Workplace-Specific Hazard Training for your JH&SC certified members.

• A hazard is considered "significant" when it has the potential to cause a lost time injury or occupational disease, if the hazard is not properly controlled.
• Workplace-Specific Hazard Training is required for any currently certified members in order to maintain their certification. W.SIB. has indicated that those certified members who do not obtain Part 2 - Certification prior to December 31, 2001 will lose their certification status

An employer may obtain "equivalency" for Workplace-Specific Hazard Training, utilizing a hazard-by-hazard format to document hazard-specific training that has been provided to your workplace certified members, if the training meets, the following required learning objectives:

• Describes the hazard and how it may cause injury or illness.
• Identifies the relevant legislation, standards, and guidelines for the hazard.
• Describes how to identify and assess the hazard.
• Describes methods of controlling the hazard.
• Includes an action plan to identify , assess and control the hazard based on an actual workplace situation.

All training needs assessment information must be submitted to WSIB along with confirmation of completion of training and other relevant training data, and must be endorsed by the certified members for WSIB approval, in order to receive Final Certification.

If we can be of any assistance with your continued Certification Training or compliance endeavors, please feel free to call, fax, or E-Mail us at your convenience.

Tel: (905) 821-8928 Fax: (905) 821-8435 Email: help@helpsafetyservices.com