August 2, 2017
Effective January 1, 2018, Regulation 833 and O. Reg. 490/09 are amended by (O. Reg. 287/17) and (O. Reg. 288/17) to reflect the adoption of new or revised occupational exposure limits (OELs) or listings for 21 chemical substances based on recommendations by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH). These changes were included in the Ministry’s 2016 consultation “Proposed Changes Affecting the Control of Hazardous Substances under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.” An overview of these changes is given below:
In addition to the changes noted above, effective January 1, 2018, the Ministry has moved forward with the adoption of proposals that were the subject of earlier consultations. These changes include the adoption of a more protective OEL for the substance beryllium, the adoption of the ACGIH method for addressing exposures to the aliphatic hydrocarbon gases (C1 – C4), and changing the minimum oxygen content in section 138(1) of Regulation 851 – Industrial Establishments from 18% to 19.5% as set out in (O. Reg. 289/17).
April 3, 2017
Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training Regulation under the Occupational Health and Safety Act come into effect on April 1, 2017.
The amendments replace the original transition provision and provide an additional six months for completion of working at heights training if the employer has written proof showing that a worker, who completed the training under subsection 26.2(1) of O. Reg. 213/91 before April 1, 2015, is enrolled in an approved working at heights training program that is scheduled to be completed before October 1, 2017.
The proof of enrollment must include the name of the worker, the name of the approved training provider, the date on which the approved training is scheduled to be completed, and the name of the approved training program. The written proof of enrollment must be made available to an inspector upon request.
June 30, 2016
Amendments to the Construction Projects Regulation under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) to strengthen and clarify existing requirements relating to the use of suspended access equipment have been approved. The amendments are consistent with the changes proposed by the Ministry of Labour in the Summary of Proposal document that was posted on the government’s Regulatory Registry for a 90-day public consultation from March 20 to June 22, 2015. Key amendments include:
Amendments relating to the use of suspended access equipment will come into force on January 1, 2017. For more information on the amendments including the coming into force dates for the miscellaneous amendments, please visit the Source Law section of the e-Laws website.
It is expected that the amendments will be consolidated into the e-Laws version of the official regulation in the near future.
June 30, 2016
The Ontario government has amended the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and the WHMIS Regulation (R.R.O. 1990, Regulation 860) made under the OHSA to adopt new, international standards that are part of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).
The amendments to the OHSA and WHMIS Regulation affect various requirements governing labels and safety data sheets for hazardous workplace chemicals. Also affected are definitions, terminology and provisions that protect confidential business information related to hazardous workplace chemicals. The changes reflect amendments to the federal Hazardous Products Act and new Hazardous Products Regulations, which came into force February 11, 2015.
The new requirements in the OHSA and WHMIS Regulation come into effect July 1, 2016. To give workplace parties time to adjust to the new requirements, there will be a transition period to gradually phase out the old requirements.
During the transition, employers must ensure workers are trained on both the old and new labels and safety data sheets for as long as both are present in the workplace.
June 8, 2016
Amendments to various provisions of Regulation 854 (Mines and Mining Plants) under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) have been approved. The amendments include:
Most of the amendments will come into force July 1, 2016. New requirements relating to risk assessments, water management, traffic management and ground control will come into force on January 1, 2017 to provide stakeholders with time to comply.
All surface diamond driller signing authorities and mine managers will receive updated Program Guidelines in the mail from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.
In addition, Schedule 68 of Regulation 950 under the Provincial Offences Act has also been amended. This is the schedule of offences for Regulation 854 (Mines and Mining Plants) under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and allows a Ministry of Labour health and safety inspector to issue a ticket to a specific workplace party where they observe a contravention in a workplace. Learn more about those amendments, which come into effect on October 1, 2016.
May 11, 2016
The Ministry of Labour is consulting on a proposal to amend the Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training Regulation (O. Reg. 297/13) under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The amendments, if approved, would require employers to ensure that workers who perform work to which the Construction Projects Regulation (O. Reg. 213/91) applies complete a construction hazard awareness training program.
For more information on the proposals please visit the Government of Ontario’s Regulatory Registry.
December 17, 2015
A new Noise Regulation under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) was approved on December 9, 2015:
This regulation (O. Reg. 381/15) replaces the noise protection requirements set out in the regulations for Industrial Establishments, Mines and Mining Plants, and Oil and Gas-Offshore. It extends the noise protection requirements contained in the regulations below to all workplaces under OHSA:
The Farming Operations Regulation has also been amended so the new Noise Regulation will apply to farming operations:
New workplaces covered by this regulation include:
The Noise Regulation comes into effect on July 1, 2016. It will help protect Ontario's workers from noise-induced hearing loss, a leading cause of occupational disease for Ontario workers.
The new regulation is in keeping with changes proposed by the Ministry of Labour in a Summary of Proposal. A 60-day public consultation was held from October 28 to December 29, 2014.
Key changes include:
For more information, visit the Source Law section of the e-Laws website: Noise Regulation.
November 30, 2015
Amendments to three regulations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) have been approved. The amendments formalize the changes proposed by the Ministry of Labour in the Summary of Proposal document that was posted on the government’s Regulatory Registry for a 60-day public consultation from October 28 to December 29, 2014. Key amendments include:
With respect to the Ministry of Labour’s proposal to introduce noise requirements under the Construction Projects Regulation, please refer to Regulatory Registry Proposal Number 14-MOL005 for updates.
For more information on the amendments and the coming into force dates of the provisions, please visit the Source Law section of the e-Laws website:
It is expected that the amendments will be consolidated into the e-Laws version of the official regulation in the near future.
November 25, 2015
The Ministry is consulting on proposed changes to the Mining Regulation under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, including new or amended requirements for risk assessments, water management and traffic management programs, recording of seismic events, and surface diamond drill training.
This consultation is closed.
March 20, 2015
The Ministry of Labour is proposing to strengthen requirements related to the operation of suspended access equipment set out in the Construction Projects Regulation (O. Reg. 213/91) under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The proposal would apply to all buildings and structures where suspended access equipment may be used and where the Regulation applies. The proposal would not apply to activities subject to the Window Cleaning Regulation (Regulation 859).
This consultation is closed.
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