Health and Safety Policy 31-500 | Effective Date: April 19, 2022

Policy

WorkSafeNB is committed to providing a physically and psychologically healthy and safe environment for all its employees, contractors, clients, and members of the public. This is achieved through WorkSafeNB’s strong health and safety program that engages workers in safe work practices and supports a safety culture that aligns with our strategic focus of People, Prevention and Integrity.

Further, WorkSafeNB is committed to compliance with provincial and federal health and safety legislation and the Occupational Health and Safety Act. As part of this compliance, WorkSafeNB ensures provision of appropriate employee training, job-specific safe work practices, personal protective equipment, operation and maintenance procedures, and safety guidelines that focus management, employee, and contractor awareness on reducing the risk of incidents in all activities.

WorkSafeNB actively supports the internal responsibility system in which we all have a responsibility to work together to prevent injuries and contribute to our culture of health and safety. This means we will work in a safe and healthy manner, have regard for the safety of those around us, and will not sacrifice safety for convenience.

WorkSafeNB will ensure sufficient resources are allocated to support the health and safety program and the initiatives developed within the program. Further, WorkSafeNB is committed to continuous improvement of the health and safety of our workplace and reviews and updates our health and safety program and policy on an annual basis to adapt to industry changes, trends, and requirements.

Interpretation

1. For a health and safety program to achieve its desired results, everyone in a workplace must know their responsibilities. Critical responsibilities of the employers (management), supervisors, and employees are legislated in the Occupational Health and Safety Act. These responsibilities are outlined and elaborated on in Appendix A Health and Safety Roles and Responsibilities. In addition to the appendix, WorkSafeNB communicates these roles and responsibilities through its training of new employees and ongoing education and engagement of existing employees.

2. Building on the vital roles and responsibilities prescribed in legislation, WorkSafeNB has health and safety roles that are particular to our organization and these include the Board of Directors, the Executive Leadership Team, and a dedicated Occupational Health and Safety Specialist within the Human Resource Department.

3. The Board of Directors is responsible for governance and oversight of health and safety by approving goals, targets, and strategies related to health and safety at WorkSafeNB, reviewing and understanding strategic health and safety risks that WorkSafeNB may face, and examining accountability reports that provide information on risk management initiatives and health and safety plan implementation and progress.

4. The Executive Leadership Team is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of risk management strategies, ensuring sufficient resources are allocated to implement a comprehensive health and safety program, and ensuring appropriate organizational structures to manage health and safety are in place.

5. The Human Resources Department is responsible for developing, implementing, and overseeing the occupational health and safety program. This is done through consultation and cooperation with employees, management, Joint Health and Safety Committees (JHSC) and in collaboration with Enterprise Risk Management and Security. In addition, they will support workplace health and safety throughout all WorkSafeNB work locations, including support to the JHSC and the health and safety representatives. For more information on the JHSC please see Directive 31-500.30 Joint Health and Safety Committee.