On February 3, 2021, the Saskatchewan Government announced that it has made amendments to The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 1996 ("Regulation") to standardize workplace requirements for first aid kits based on the Canadian Standards Association ("CSA") standard 22110-17 guidelines.
Further personal protective standards were also adopted, but did not require amendments to the Regulations. These include:
- Protective headwear (CSA Z94.1 2015);
- Eye and face protection (CSA Z94.3 2015);
- Protective footwear (CSA Z195-14);
- Hearing protection (CSA Z94.2-14); and
- Personal floatation devices (these must be labelled as approved by Transport Canada or another recognized maritime authority).
The amendments included changes to bring seismic exploration workers under the blasting requirements of the Regulations. The amendments also sought to reduce confusion for employers, contractors, and workers by consolidating The Occupational Health and Safety (Prime Contractor) Regulations and The Occupational Health and Safety (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System) Regulations into The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 2020. Wording changes were also made to clarify the language in the Regulations.
Don Morgan, the Labour Relations and Workplace Safety Minister, stated that the amendments are meant to benefit employees and employers:
Having a consistent standard among jurisdictions will ensure the health and safety of employees. It will also provide opportunities for economic growth as employers will be able to better navigate jurisdiction requirements when they have employees working on jobs in other provinces.
The amendments take effect on April 1, 2021. Employers should take note that the amendments resulted in numbering changes to the Regulations.
We will continue to monitor and report on amendments made to Saskatchewan employment legislation.
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