HomeMy WebLinkAboutP 058 HS - Occupational Health and Safety •
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OTTAWA-CARLETON
DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
POLICY P 058 HS
TITLE: OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY
Date Authorized: 25 June 1998
Last Revised: 31 January 2023 (Tier 1 Minor Housekeeping Edits)
Last Reviewed: 17 December 2025
COMMITMENT TO INDIGENOUS RIGHTS, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND EQUITY
The District recognizes its responsibility to ensure that this policy and associated procedures promote
and protect Indigenous rights, human rights, and equity. The District will strive to address and
eliminate discrimination and structural and systemic barriers for students, staff, and community.
1.0 RATIONALE
To set out the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board's commitment to providing and
maintaining safe and healthy working and learning environments for all staff and students in
accordance with the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act.
2.0 DEFINITIONS
Please refer to Appendix A for the definitions of terms used in this policy.
3.0 POLICY
Policy Statement
3.1 The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board is committed to:
a) providing and maintaining healthy and safe working and learning environments
for all employees, students and other authorized occupants of District sites;
b) preventing occupational illness and injury in the workplace;
c) continually improving health and safety practices and performance;
d) complying with all relevant provisions of the Ontario Occupational Health and
Safety Act, and other related legislation and regulations, codes, standards and
practices; and
e) striving, where reasonable, to exceed the legislated requirements by adopting
best practices to protect the OCDSB community and to promote a health and
safety culture across the District.
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To support these commitments, the OCDSB and its employees are jointly
responsible to implement and maintain an effective internal responsibility system
directed at promoting health and safety and the prevention of incidents leading to
occupational injury or illness.
Guiding Principles
3.2 The District shall ensure, through the implementation of this policy that:
a) all reasonable steps are taken for the prevention of injury and illness and toward
the maintenance of a safe and healthy workplace;
b) all supervisors and workers understand their roles, rights, and responsibilities
with respect to workplace health and safety;
c) as part of an effective internal responsibility system, health and safety related
concerns will be reported promptly and addressed in a safe and timely manner;
and
d) the District is meeting or exceeding all applicable legislated occupational health
and safety requirements.
4.0 SPECIFIC DIRECTIVES
4.1 The District, through the establishment of an Occupational Health and Safety Division
(OH&S Division), shall institute an occupational health and safety management system,
including:
a) a framework for setting and reviewing health and safety objectives and targets;
b) health and safety awareness and training programs;
c) a reporting system(s) that supports accurate and prompt reporting of health and
safety related concerns;
d) hazard identification and risk assessment processes to eliminate identified
hazards or control risk;
e) incident/accident investigation and analysis, including `near misses' as well as
the identification of measures to prevent recurrences and mitigate injury;
f) a Joint Health and Safety Committee to monitor and provide recommendations
on occupational health and safety matters throughout the District;
g) a comprehensive emergency prevention, preparedness and response program;
h) a culture of continuous improvement toward ensuring best health and safety
practices that meet or exceed requirements;
i) processes/safeguards to ensure that contractors and subcontractors undertaking
to perform work for the OCDSB must, as part of their contract, comply with all
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relevant workplace and environmental health and safety statutes and meet or
exceed OCDSB health and safety requirements; and
j) monitoring and measurement processes to ensure the effectiveness of the
program and its components in promoting and maintaining a healthy and safe
workplace.
Note: This policy does not apply to construction projects on District property where the
OCDSB is not the constructor or employer, as defined under the Occupational Health &
Safety Act.
4.2 The Director of Education is authorized to issue such procedures as may be necessary
to implement this policy. Such procedures shall, as applicable:
a) include measures and procedures for workers to report health and safety related
incidents;
b) require that appropriate information and instruction be provided to workers on
the contents of the policy and procedures; and
c) include monitoring and measuring processes to ensure the effectiveness of the
District's health and safety programs in promoting and maintaining a healthy and
safe workplace.
5.0 APPENDICES
Appendix A: Policy Definitions
6.0 REFERENCES
Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act R.S.O. 1990 (as amended)
OCDSB Policy P 054 HS - Workplace Safety and Insurance
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APPENDIX A: POLICY DEFINITIONS
In this policy,
Board means the Board of Trustees.
District means the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board.
Internal Responsibility System refers to the underlying philosophy of occupational health and
safety, based on the foundation that everyone in the workplace, including the employer, supervisors
and employees are collectively responsible for creating and maintaining a safe and healthy
workplace.
Supervisor means the person designated by title and practice as the person having organizational
authority to direct the work of workers in a particular area. In the case of school sites, the supervisor
shall be the principal or, in the principal's absence, the vice-principal or other designate.
Worker means any of the following:
a) A person who performs work or supplies services for monetary compensation;
b) A secondary school student who performs work or supplies services for no monetary
compensation under a work experience program authorized by the school board that
operates the school in which the student is enrolled;
c) A person who performs work or supplies services for no monetary compensation under
a program approved by a college of applied arts and technology, university or other
post-secondary institution;
d) A person who receives training from the OCDSB, but who, under the Ontario
Employment Standards Act, 2000, is not an employee for the purposes of that Act
because the conditions set out in subsection 1(2) of that Act have been met; and
e) Such other persons as may be defined as a worker by the Ontario Occupational Health
and Safety Act.
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