National Joint Council

Occupational Health & Safety - Chapter 2-20 - Committees and Representatives Directive

Occupational Health & Safety - Chapter 2-20 - Committees and Representatives Directive

Notice to the reader: This document is no longer in effect. It has been archived online and is kept purely for historical purposes.

General

Collective agreement

This Directive is deemed to be part of collective agreements between the parties to the National Joint Council (NJC). Employees are to be afforded ready access to this directive.

In cases of alleged misinterpretation or misapplication arising out of this standard, the grievance procedure, for all represented employees, within the meaning of the Public Service Labour Relations Act, will be in accordance with Section 7.0 of the National Joint Council By‑Laws. For unrepresented employees the departmental grievance procedure applies. (revised April 1, 2005)

This standard is deemed to be part of collective agreements between the parties to the National Joint Council and, employees are to be afforded ready access to this standard.

Application

This standard incorporates the minimum requirements of the Canada Labour Code, Part II, and applicable regulations issued pursuant to that legislation and applies to all departments and other portions of the Public Service, as defined in Schedules I and IV of the Financial Administration Act. (revised April 1, 2005)

Definitions

In this standard:

bargaining agent (agent négociateur) means an employee organization:

that has been certified by the Public Service Labour Relations Board as bargaining agent for a bargaining unit, and (revised April 1, 2005)
the certification of which has not been revoked;

regional office (bureau régional) means the regional office of the Department of Labour for the administrative region of the Department in which the work place is situated;

safety and health committee (comité de la santé et de la sécurité) means a committee established pursuant to this standard;

safety and health representative (représentant à la sécurité) means a representative appointed pursuant to this standard;

safety officer (agent de sécurité) means a person designated as a safety officer pursuant to the Canada Labour Code, Part II, and includes a regional safety officer;

work place (lieu de travail) means any place where an employee is engaged in work for the employee's department, i.e., the place of assignment as a function of employment.

Safety and Health Committees

20.1 National and regional committees

20.1.1 Agreements between departments and bargaining agents for the formation and operation of national and regional safety and health committees remain valid. Chapter 4‑9, National and regional safety and health committees, outlines various requirements respecting the establishment and operation of these committees.

20.2 Work place committees

20.2.1 Every department shall, for each departmental work place at which twenty or more employees are normally employed, establish a safety and health committee consisting of at least two persons, one of whom is an employee or, where the committee consists of more than two persons, at least half of whom are employees who:

do not exercise managerial functions; and
have been selected by the bargaining agent representatives.

20.2.2 For the purposes of paragraph 4(1), an employee cannot be a step in the grievance procedure or a managerial exclusion.

20.2.3 A department is not required under this standard, to establish a safety and health committee pursuant to paragraph 4, for a work place that is on board a ship in respect of employees whose base is the ship.

20.3 Additional committees

20.3.1 Where a department controls more than one work place referred to in this standard or the size or nature of the operations of the department or the work place precludes the effective functioning of a single safety and health committee for those work places, the department shall, in consultation with the bargaining agents and subject to the approval of or in accordance with the direction of a safety officer, establish a safety and health committee for such of those work places as are specified in the approval or direction.

20.4 Members

20.4.1 A department shall select the member or members of a safety and health committee to represent the department from among persons who have management authority.

20.4.2 A safety and health committee shall have two chairpersons selected from among the members of the committee, one being selected by the bargaining agent representatives and the other by the departmental representatives.

20.4.3 The chairpersons referred to in paragraph 9 shall act alternately for such period of time as the safety and health committee specifies in its rules of procedure.

20.4.4 A person may be selected as a member of a safety and health committee for more than one term.

20.4.5 Where a member of a safety and health committee resigns or ceases to be a member for any other reason, the vacancy shall be filled within 30 days after the next regular meeting of the committee.

20.4.6 The quorum of a safety and health committee shall consist of the majority of the members of the committee, of which at least half are bargaining agent representatives and at least one is a departmental representative.

20.5 Exemptions

20.5.1 Where a department, in consultation with the bargaining agents, is satisfied that the nature of work being done by employees at a work place is relatively free from risks to safety and health, the department may be exempted from the requirements of paragraph 4, in respect of the work place. In such cases, a request for exemption shall be referred by the department to the appropriate regional or district office of Labour Canada.

20.5.2 Where, pursuant to a collective agreement or any other agreement between the employer and employees, a committee of persons has been appointed in respect of a work place controlled by a department and such committee has, in the opinion of a safety officer, a responsibility for matters relating to safety and health in the work place to such an extent that a safety and health committee established under paragraph 4 for that work place would not be necessary:

the safety officer may, by order, exempt the department from the requirements of paragraph 4 in respect of that work place;
the committee of persons that has been appointed for the work place has, in addition to any rights, functions, powers, privileges and obligations under the agreement, the same rights, functions, powers, privileges and obligations as a safety and health committee under this standard; and
the committee of persons so appointed shall, for the purposes of this standard, be deemed to be a safety and health committee established under paragraph 4 and all rights and obligations of departments and employees under this standard and the provisions of this standard respecting a safety and health committee apply, with such modifications as the circumstances require, in respect of the committee of persons so appointed.

20.6 Posting names

20.6.1 A department shall post and keep posted the names and work locations of all the members of the safety and health committee established for the work place controlled by the department in a conspicuous place or places where they are likely to come to the attention of the department's employees.

20.7 Committee powers

20.7.1 A safety and health committee:

shall receive, consider and expeditiously dispose of complaints relating to the safety and health of the employees represented by the committee;
shall maintain records pertaining to the disposition of complaints relating to the safety and health of the employees represented by the committee;
shall cooperate with any occupational health service established to serve the work place;
may establish and promote safety and health programs for the education of the employees represented by the committee;
shall take part in all inquiries and investigations pertaining to occupational safety and health including such consultations as may be necessary with persons who are professionally or technically qualified to advise the committee on such matters. The committee's involvement in these activities shall include the participation of committee members appointed by the chairpersons;
should develop, establish and maintain programs, measures and procedures for the protection or improvement of the safety and health of employees;
shall monitor on a regular basis programs, measures and procedures related to the safety and health of employees. Such monitoring includes work place inspections and accident investigations. Where unsafe conditions or practices requiring immediate attention are found, the committee shall forthwith notify the person in charge;
shall ensure that adequate records are kept on work accidents, injuries and health hazards and shall monitor data relating to such accidents, injuries and hazards on a regular basis;
shall cooperate with safety officers;
may request from a department such information as either party of the committee considers necessary to identify existing or potential hazards with respect to materials, processes or equipment in the work place;
shall have full access to all correspondence and reports relating to the safety and health of employees represented by the committee, but shall not have access to the medical records of any employee, except with the consent of that employee;
shall assist in the determination of requirements for personal protective equipment pursuant to Personal protective equipment directive, chapter 2‑14; and
may provide advice in planning and implementing changes in the work place where occupational safety and health may be a factor, including work processes and procedures.

20.8 Minutes

20.8.1 The chairperson selected by the departmental representatives shall provide a copy of the minutes of each safety and health committee meeting to the department and to each committee member as soon as possible after the meeting.

20.8.2 As soon as possible after a copy of committee minutes is received, the department shall post same in the place or places referred to in paragraph 16 and keep it posted there for a period of two months.

20.8.3 A copy of the committee minutes shall be kept by the department at the work place to which it applies or at departmental headquarters for a period of two years from the day on which the committee meeting was held in such a manner that it is readily available for examination by a safety officer.

20.8.4 The chairperson selected by the departmental representatives shall:

not later than March 1 in each year, submit to the regional safety officer at the regional office, a report of the committee's activities during the 12‑month period ending on December 31of the preceding year, signed by both chairpersons in the Labour Canada Form No. 499 (rev. 2/86) entitled "Safety and Health Committee Report" and containing the infromation required by that form; and
as soon as possible after submitting the report referred to in paragraph 21(1), post a copy of the report in the place or places referred to in paragraph 16 and keep it posted there for a period of two months.

20.9 Records

20.9.1 A safety and health committee shall keep accurate records of all matter that come before it pursuant to paragraph 17 and shall keep minutes of its meetings and shall make such minutes and records available to a safety officer on his or her request.

20.10 Meetings

20.10.1 A safety and health committee shall meet during regular working hours at least once each month and, where meetings are required on an urgent basis as a result of an emergency or other special circumstance, the committee shall meet as required whether or not during regular working hours.

20.10.2 Members of a safety and health committee are entitled to such time from their work as is necessary to attend meetings or to carry out any other functions as members of the committee, including reasonable meeting preparation time, and any time spent by the member while carrying out any of his or her functions as a member of the committee shall, for the purposes of calculating wages owing to him or her, be deemed to have been spent at work.

20.11 Liability

20.11.1 No member of a safety and health committee is personally liable for anything done or omitted to be done by him or her in good faith under the authority of this standard.

20.12 Committee rules

20.12.1 A safety and health committee may establish its own rules of procedure in respect of the terms of the office not exceeding two years of its members, the time, place and frequency of regular meetings of the committee, and such procedures for its operations as it considers advisable.

20.13 General prohibition

20.13.1 No department shall fail or neglect to provide a safety and health committee with any information requested by it pursuant to paragraph 17(10).

Safety and Health Representatives

20.14 Representatives

20.14.1 Every department shall, for each work place controlled by it at which five or more employees are normally employed and for which no safety and health committee has been established, appoint the person selected pursuant to paragraph 29 as the safety and health representative for that work place.

20.14.2 The employees at a work place referred to in paragraph 28 who do not exercise managerial functions, and have bargaining agent representatives, shall select from among those employees a person to be appointed as the safety and health representative of that work place and shall advise the department in writing of the name of the person so selected.

20.14.3 For the purposes of paragraph 29, an employee cannot be a step in the grievance procedure or a managerial exclusion.

20.14.4 The term of office of a safety and health representative shall be not more than two years.

20.14.5 An employee may be selected as a safety and health representative for more than one term.

20.14.6 Where a safety and health representative resigns are ceases to be a representatives for any other reason, the vacancy shall be filled within 30 days.

20.15 Additional representatives

20.15.1 Where a department controls more than one work place referred to in this standard or the size or nature of the operations of the department or the work precludes the effective functioning of a single safety and health representative for those work places, the department shall, in consultation with the bargaining agents and subject to the approval of or in accordance with the direction of a safety officer, appoint a safety and health representative for such of those work places as are specified in the approval or direction.

20.16 Posing of name

20.16.1 A department shall post and keep posted, in a conspicuous place or places where it is likely to come to the attention of its employees, the name and work location of the safety and health representative appointed for the work place controlled by that department.

20.17 Representative powers

20.17.1 A safety and health representative:

shall receive, consider and expeditiously dispose of complaints relating to the safety and health of employees represented by the representative;
shall take part in all inquiries and investigations pertaining to occupational safety and health including such consultations as may be necessary with persons who are professionally or technically qualified to advise the representative on such matters;
shall monitor on a regular basis, programs, measures and procedures related to the safety and health of employees;
shall ensure that adequate records are kept on work accidents, injuries and health hazards and shall monitor data relating to such accidents, injuries and hazards on a regular basis;
may request from a department such information as the representative considers necessary to identify existing or potential hazards with respect to materials, processes or equipment in the work place; and
shall have full access to all correspondence and reports relating to safety and health of the employees represented by the representative, but shall not have access to the medical records of any employee, except with the consent of that employee.

20.18 Wages

20.18.1 A safety and health representative is entitled to such time from his or her work as is necessary to carry out his or her functions as a representative and any time spent while carrying out any of those functions shall, for the purpose of calculating wages owing to him or her, be deemed to have been spent at work.

Important Notices

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