Skip to content

New occupational health and safety legislation regarding harassment effective in Newfoundland and Labrador January 1, 2020

Twila Reid and Kara Harrington

On January 1, 2020, changes to the Newfoundland and Labrador Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 2012 (“Regulations”) will take effect. These changes impact employers in a variety of ways, most notably requiring employers to: develop written harassment prevention plans, conduct risk assessments, protect workers from potential family violence in the workplace and to provide training regarding harassment prevention and the harassment prevention plan.

Harassment prevention plan. Section 24.1 of the Regulations requires employers to develop, implement and maintain a written harassment prevention plan in consultation with their occupational health and safety committee, worker health and safety representative, or workplace health and safety designate. The harassment prevention plan must include specific language regarding the obligations of the employer and workers, as well as various procedures for reporting, investigating and managing complaints. Section 24.1(4) requires that the harassment prevention plan be accessible to all workers in the workplace and be reviewed at least annually.

Risk assessments. The Regulations also add the requirement that employers conduct a risk assessment. Section 22.1 provides that the risk assessment must include consideration of a variety of factors, including workplace demographics and previous experiences in the workplace and in similar workplaces, and sets out the confidentiality requirement for the information collected during the risk assessment. Once the employer has conducted the risk assessment, Section 23 mandates that employers address any identified risks of injury to workers from violence by establishing procedures, policies and work environment arrangements to eliminate or minimize those risks.

Family violence. One of the key changes of the Regulations is the addition of “family violence” to the employer’s purview. Section 23(2) requires employers to take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances to protect workers from family violence of which the employer is, or ought to be, aware could expose a worker to physical injury in the workplace.

Training. Section 24.2 requires employers to both participate in and provide training relating to both harassment prevention and the harassment prevention plan.

Failure to comply with the Regulations could have serious consequences for an employer, as well as the employer’s directors, officers and agents. Therefore, it is crucial that employers keep proper records of their compliance, or else they could face difficulty defending against a claim for breach of the Regulations, and new case law indicates directors may also be held personally liable for claims.

Records. Employers should keep records of all activities that establish compliance with the Regulations. Without such records, there is no proof of compliance, and so the employer could still be held liable for failing to comply with the Regulations.

Liability of employer, directors, officers and agents. If employers fail to comply with the Regulations, they may be charged with an offence under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. If found guilty of the offence, the corporation may be fined up to $250,000, as well as up to $25,000 per day for each day the offence continues. Importantly, where a corporation has been convicted of an offence, an officer, director, or agent of the corporation who directed, authorized, assented to, acquiesced or participated in the commission of the offence is also guilty of an offence under that section.

Personal liability. Beyond liability under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, if employers breach the Regulations and a worker is hurt, the directors of the corporation may be held personally liable in a subrogated action by Workers’ Compensation. In a recent Court of Appeal decision from Alberta, Hall v Stewart, 2019 ABCA 98, the Court explained that, while the employer was protected from liability due to the workers’ compensation regime, the employer’s immunity did not extend to its directors, and so without additional coverage purchased through the workers’ compensation system, a negligent director could be held personally liable for any personal injuries he caused to the workers as a result of a negligent act, even though his negligent act occurred as part of his work for the employer. Thus, compliance with all of the relevant occupational health and safety legislation is crucial for avoiding a potentially expanding basis for liability.


This update is intended for general information only. Should you have questions on the above, please contact a member of our Labour & Employment group.

 

Click here to subscribe to Stewart McKelvey Thought Leadership.

 

SHARE

Archive

Search Archive


 
 

IRCC expands authorization for foreign workers to study without a study permit: Four things you need to know

July 13, 2023

By Sara Espinal Henao Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”) has announced a promising new temporary measure that allows foreign workers to study for a longer duration without a study permit, opening the door for…

Read More

Canada’s first-ever Tech Talent Strategy announced

July 12, 2023

By Brendan Sheridan The Government of Canada recently announced a number of aggressive immigration measures to help attract top talent to Canada in high-growth industries in an effort to fuel innovation and drive emerging technologies.…

Read More

ESG and dispute resolution: fighting for greener ways

July 5, 2023

By Daniela Bassan, K.C. All stakeholders in the legal profession, including litigators, have a shared interest in promoting environmental, social, and governance (ESG) pathways towards building a greener society. It is crucial for litigators to…

Read More

Amendments to the Canada Business Corporations Act affecting registers of individuals with significant control

June 30, 2023

By Kimberly Bungay and Colton Smith Since June of 2019, corporations formed under the Canada Business Corporations Act have been required to prepare and maintain a register of individuals with significant control (an “ISC Register”).…

Read More

Navigating the waters: Compliance with multiple regimes

June 22, 2023

By Kim Walsh and Olivia Bungay Compliance with Russian sanctions goes beyond complying with Canada’s Russia Regulations. Canadian individuals and businesses may be unaware of several other sanctions regimes that apply to them. In conjunction…

Read More

Nova Scotia releases offshore wind roadmap

June 21, 2023

By David Randell, Robert Grant, K.C., Sadira Jan, and James Gamblin On June 14, 2023, the Province of Nova Scotia released the first of three modules (the “Module”) which will comprise the Nova Scotia Offshore…

Read More

Board, Bye!: Changes to the Municipal Appeal Process under the Urban and Rural Planning Act, 2000

June 19, 2023

By: Joe Thorne, Giles Ayers, and Jayna Green Introduction Prior to June 1, 2023, decisions made by municipal town councils in Newfoundland and Labrador could be appealed to one of four Regional Appeal Boards pursuant…

Read More

Navigating Canada’s sanctions against Russia: New guidance on ownership and control of an entity

June 16, 2023

By Kim Walsh and Olivia Bungay Canadian sanctions targeting Russia in relation to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine were significantly expanded over the past year. Critical to compliance with Canada’s sanctions targeting Russia, individuals and…

Read More

Navigating Canada’s economic sanctions against Russia

June 6, 2023

By Kim Walsh and Olivia Bungay Canadian sanctions targeting Russia in relation to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine were significantly expanded over the past year. The Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations impose sanctions on individuals…

Read More

Federal Government introduces amendments to expand the mandates of the two historic Atlantic Accord Acts to include offshore wind energy

June 1, 2023

David Randell, Sadira Jan, Robert Grant, K.C., Greg Moores, G. John Samms, and James Gamblin The recent tabling of federal legislation is an important step for offshore wind development in the offshore areas of Nova…

Read More

Search Archive


Scroll To Top