Roles and Responsibilities

• ISBN: 978-1-4435-2830-6
• Issued: March 2010
• Content last reviewed: March 2010
• PDF Version [ 403 Kb / 50 pages | Download Adobe Reader ]
• See also: Workplace Violence and Workplace Harassment

4.1 Joint Health and Safety Committees / Health and Safety Representatives

Joint health and safety committees and health and safety representatives have the same powers and responsibilities for workplace violence hazards as they do for other occupational health and safety hazards under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. For example, their role during a work refusal [Section 43] is the same for workplace violence as it is for any other workplace hazard.

These committees and health and safety representatives should also be able to recognize risks of workplace violence in the course of carrying out their regular functions such as inspecting workplaces.

An employer may wish to consult with his or her workplace’s joint health and safety committee or health and safety representative when developing workplace violence and workplace harassment policies and programs. ^[5]

Employers must advise the joint health and safety committee or health and safety representative of the results of an assessment of workplace violence risks [Section 32.0.3(3)(a)] or the results of a reassessment [section 32.0.3(5)]. For more information, see Section 2.3 - Assessing the Risks of Workplace Violence.

Employers must also inform the committee or health and safety representative if a person is killed, critically injured, disabled from performing their usual work, or requires medical attention due to workplace violence [sections 51(1) and 52(1)]. For more information, see Section 2.9 - Notices.

For more information, see A Guide for Joint Health and Safety Committees and Representatives in the Workplace.

4.2 Ministry of Labour

The Ministry of Labour carries out workplace inspections to:

• ensure compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act and its regulations; and to
• ensure the workplace’s internal responsibility system is working.

Ministry of Labour health and safety inspectors may check to ensure employers, supervisors and workers are complying with workplace violence and workplace harassment requirements. They may do this as part of a general inspection of a workplace or when investigating a specific complaint or incident.

Inspectors may issue written orders to comply with the act when contraventions are found [Section 57].

The ministry may also prosecute an employer, supervisor or worker if a contravention is found or if they have failed to comply with an order of an inspector, a director or the minister [Section 66(1)].

See A Guide to the Occupational Health and Safety Act for more information on the role of ministry inspectors.

Police may also investigate violent incidents and complaints. See Section 4.3 of this guide for more information about the role of the police.

It is not the role of ministry inspectors to resolve or mediate specific allegations of harassment in the workplace.

Employers are responsible for investigating and dealing with incidents and complaints of workplace harassment. They are also responsible for making decisions on what steps, if any, should be taken as a result.

A worker may also seek resolution of a workplace harassment incident or complaint outside of the employer’s internal investigation procedure. In particular, a worker may do this if he or she believes the employer did not properly deal with the matter.

For example, a worker may:

• contact the Human Rights Tribunal to file an application to have their matter heard if the alleged harassment is based on one of the grounds prohibited under the Ontario Human Rights Code; or
• seek to resolve harassment issues through the grievance arbitration process if they are represented by a union; or
• seek to resolve harassment issues through civil litigation, depending on the circumstances.

4.3 Police

Canada’s Criminal Code deals with matters such as violent acts, threats and behaviours such as stalking. The police should be contacted immediately when an act of violence has occurred in the workplace or when someone in the workplace is threatened with violence.

4.4 Ontario Human Rights System

Ontario’s Human Rights Code is a provincial law that gives everyone equal rights and opportunities without discrimination or harassment in specific areas such as employment, housing and services.

The code’s goal is to prevent discrimination and harassment based on the following 15 grounds:

• race
• ancestry
• place of origin
• colour
• ethnic origin
• citizenship
• creed (religion)
• sex (including pregnancy and gender identity)
• sexual orientation
• disability
• age (18 and over, 16 and over in occupancy of accommodation)
• marital status (including same sex partners)
• family status
• receipt of public assistance (in accommodation only) and
• record of offences (in employment only).

“Disability” covers a broad range and degree of conditions, some visible and others not. A disability may be present from birth, caused by an accident or developed over time. It may include physical, mental and learning disabilities, mental disorders, hearing or vision disabilities, epilepsy, drug and alcohol dependencies, environmental sensitivities, as well as other conditions.

Under the Human Rights Code, protection from discrimination or harassment includes past, present and perceived conditions involving disabilities.

For example, a person who experiences discrimination because he or she was an alcoholic in the past is protected. Similarly, a person whose condition does not limit his or her workplace abilities at present, but who may be at greater risk of having limitations in the future is also protected.

When dealing with workplace violence and harassment, employers should be aware of their responsibilities for people with disabilities under the Human Rights Code.

Under the code, employers have an obligation to keep the workplace free of discrimination and harassment related to one or more of the code’s prohibited grounds.

Employers, supervisors and workers may be held liable under Ontario’s human rights system if harassment occurs in the workplace or at work-related functions. They may also be liable for failing to take proper steps to address and prevent that harassment.

Ontario’s human rights system consists of three separate and independent parts. They are the:

• Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario which decides if someone’s human rights have been violated. If a person thinks his or her rights under the code have been violated, he or she can file an application directly with the tribunal and it will decide the best way to deal with the situation.
• Human Rights Legal Support Centre which helps people who file applications with the tribunal. Services may include advice, support and legal representation.
• Ontario Human Rights Commission, which provides leadership for the promotion, protection and advancement of human rights, and builds partnerships across the human rights system. This includes developing policies and providing targeted public education, monitoring human rights, doing research and analysis, and conducting human rights inquiries. In matters affecting the broad public interest, it may take its own cases to the tribunal or intervene in human rights cases before the tribunal.

An employer who wishes to learn more about his or her obligations under the code should visit the websites of the Commission or the Tribunal.

A worker who believes that a matter involving prohibited grounds was not properly addressed by his or her workplace should contact the Human Rights Legal Support Centre for help, or the Tribunal directly to file an application to have the matter heard.

4.5 Health and Safety Associations

Ontario’s health and safety associations provide training programs, products and services to employers and workers.

The associations, which include industry-based safe workplace associations, the Workers Health and Safety Centre and Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers, are funded by Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.

Employers and workers can contact the appropriate association for information, resources and assistance to help them comply with workplace violence and workplace harassment requirements under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

A complete listing of the health and safety associations is available at: www.wsib.on.ca/wsib/wsibsite.nsf/public/HealthSafetyCommunity.

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