British Columbia recently introduced legislation to promote workplace safety in sawmills.  Bill 35 will require more extensive involvement from members of the joint health and safety committee during workplace accident investigations, and the immediate reporting of fires or explosions that could cause serious injury to a worker.

Bill 35 is the government's response to two tragic mill accidents, the subsequent coroners' reports, as well as specific proposals in the 2014 WorkSafeBC Review and Action Plan. In 2012, two mill explosions, one in Prince George, and one in Burns Lake, killed four men and injured dozens of other workers. Following those accidents, a coroners' inquest was undertaken which resulted in specific recommendations relating to workplace safety and the standards required for building and refitting mills.  In addition, WorkSafeBC published its 2014 Review and Action Plan that included recommendations to make sawmills a safer place to work and to improve British Columbia's investigation and inspection regime.

The government accepted all of the recommendations made in the WorkSafeBC Review and Action Plan Report. Bill 35 proposes amendments to the Workers Compensation Act as part of the broader undertaking to improve safety at sawmills.

The proposed legislative changes include the following:

  • Employers must immediately report to WorkSafeBC all fires or explosions that have the potential to cause serious injury to a worker.
  • There must be meaningful participation by workers and employer representatives in employer accident investigations and mandates a specific role for workplace health and safety committees to provide advice to the employer on proposed equipment or machinery changes that may affect worker health or safety.
  • Employer investigation reports must be provided to the workplace health and safety committee or worker health and safety representative, or be posted at the work site.
  • WorkSafeBC will be involved in proactively assisting workplace health and safety committees in resolving disagreements regarding health and safety matters.

Bill 35 also builds on legislative changes made under Bill 9 earlier this year, which increased WorkSafeBC's ability to promote and enforce occupational health and safety regulations and addresses administrative issues relating to WorkSafeBC's annual report and service plan and to the WorkSafeBC Superannuation Plan.

For more information, visit our Occupational Health & Safety Law blog at www.occupationalhealthandsafetylaw.com

About Dentons

Dentons is a global firm driven to provide you with the competitive edge in an increasingly complex and interconnected marketplace. We were formed by the March 2013 combination of international law firm Salans LLP, Canadian law firm Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP (FMC) and international law firm SNR Denton.

Dentons is built on the solid foundations of three highly regarded law firms. Each built its outstanding reputation and valued clientele by responding to the local, regional and national needs of a broad spectrum of clients of all sizes – individuals; entrepreneurs; small businesses and start-ups; local, regional and national governments and government agencies; and mid-sized and larger private and public corporations, including international and global entities.

Now clients benefit from more than 2,500 lawyers and professionals in 79 locations in 52 countries across Africa, Asia Pacific, Canada, Central Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Russia and the CIS, the UK and the US who are committed to challenging the status quo to offer creative, actionable business and legal solutions.

Learn more at www.dentons.com

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances. Specific Questions relating to this article should be addressed directly to the author.