General | Alta | BC | Man | NB | Nfld | NS | NWT | Nun | Ont | PEI | Que | Sask | Yuk | Federal

Safe Workplaces

Unsafe Work

Workers' Compensation

Workplace Dangers

You Have a Say

Manitoba

You Have a Say (Right to participate in decisions affecting health and safety at work)

How can workers use the right to participate in decisions affecting workplace safety and health?

Workers can participate in workplace safety and health decision making through workplace safety and health committees, or as worker safety and health representatives. Manitoba's Safer Workplaces Act explains this.

What do safety and health committees and worker representatives do?

Generally, workers participating in workplace safety and health decision making work with the employer on removing dangers from the workplace. Committees and worker representatives identify workplace dangers, and make recommendations on improving workplace safety and health. The responsibility for workplace safety and health still belongs to the employer, though.

Does my workplace have a safety and health committee or a worker safety and health representative?

The number of workers at a workplace determines how a worker can participate in workplace safety and health decision making.

At least 20 workers: Safety and health committee
10 or more workers: Worker safety and health representative

Construction project sites with 20 or more workers require safety and health committees only when the project is expected to take more than 90 days to finish. The Director of Workplace Safety and Health at Manitoba Labour and Immigration can order any other work place to have a safety and health committee or worker safety and health representative.

Who can be a worker safety and health representative or a worker on a safety and health committee?

Workers on safety and health committees and worker safety and health representatives are chosen by workers at the workplace, or the union, if the workplace is unionized. The name(s) of the worker representative, or workers on the safety and health committee get posted at the workplace where the name(s) can be seen easily by the workers.

Workers chosen for safety and health work act on behalf of workers at the workplace. Worker safety and health representatives work alone, in consultation with the employer, while safety and health committees are made up of workers and management, who work together as a group.

Committee size: 4-12
Number of workers on the committee: At least half
Committee co chairs: A worker and a management employee

The maximum term on a committee is a year, and after the term ends, a worker can be chosen to be on the committee again.

What's the work of safety and health committees and the work of worker safety and health representatives?

Committees and representatives

address workers' concerns and complaints about workplace safety and health;

identify risks to the safety and health of workers and other people, with regard to safety and health risks connected with the workplace;

make recommendations to the employer on the safety and health of workers and others;

develop and promote measures to protect the safety and health of workers and others at the workplace, and check on how well these measures are working;

develop and promote worker education programs on workplace safety and health;

inspect the workplace regularly;

participate in investigations of workplace accidents, dangerous occurrences, and workers' refusal of unsafe work;

keep records on committees' and representatives' safety and health work; and

do the work of worker representatives and safety and health committees listed in regulations and other laws.

Go to the Workplace Safety & Health Legislation Division to see the following regulations online:

Workplace Safety and Health Committee MR106/88R

Code of Practice for Workplace Safety and Health Committees: A Guide to Organization, Functions and Procedures, and

Safety and Health Committee Checklist.

Do employers have to respond to concerns raised and corrective actions recommended by safety and health committees or worker safety and health representatives?

Committees or worker representatives can send to the employer written recommendations on anything that might be dangerous to the safety or health of workers or others. The employer doesn't need to respond to the committee or worker representative if the recommendations are put into place within 30 days. Otherwise, 30 days after the recommendations are received by the employer, her or his written response is returned to the committee or worker representative stating that the employer either rejects or accepts the recommendations. An acceptance includes a timetable for putting the recommendations into place. A rejection includes the employer's reasons for disagreeing with the recommendations.

If the employer does not accept the recommendations, then the employer, worker representative, committee or committee co chairs can report the disagreement to a safety and health officer at Manitoba Labour and Immigration's Workplace Safety and Health Division. The safety and health officer can choose to make a decision that agrees with the province's workplace safety and health laws. Workplace Safety and Health contact information for the many regions of Manitoba is available online.

When does the work of safety and health committees and worker safety and health representatives get done?

Some of the work of is done at meetings. Safety and health committees meet at least once a month, if it's decided by the Director of Workplace Safety and Health at Manitoba Labour and Immigration. Otherwise, committees meet at least every three months. Worker safety and health representatives meet regularly with the employer. Committees and worker representatives get time off from work to go to meetings. Committees and worker representatives also get time off from work to prepare for meetings and do committee work, or do the work of worker representatives.

Are workers paid for time spent on safety and health committee work and the work of safety and health worker representatives?

Yes, since time off work to do committee work and the work of worker representatives is time worked for the employer. Workers receive regular or premium pay for time spent on safety and health work.

What training do workers receive for safety and health committee work and the work of safety and health worker representatives?

Each year, workers can take workplace safety and health training given by the Workplace Safety and Health Division at Manitoba Labour and Immigration, or training approved by the Workplace Safety and Health Division, or training that's detailed in unionized workers' collective agreement. The number of hours of training a worker can take is the same as the number of hours the worker works normally over two days. Workers don't lose pay nor benefits for time taken to get workplace safety and health training.

Can a worker be fired or disciplined for participating in workplace safety and health decision making?

Workers' participation in workplace safety and health decision making could be considered risky. A worker might want to voice an opinion that goes against the workplace's usual ways. But it's illegal in Manitoba for an employer to discipline or fire a worker for her or his participation in a safety and health committee, or participation as a worker safety and health representative.

A worker who suspects that she or he has been disciplined or dismissed for participating in workplace safety and health decision making can make a complaint to a safety and health officer at Manitoba Labour and Immigration's Workplace Safety and Health Division. Workplace Safety and Health contact information for the many regions of Manitoba is available online.

News Feeds

Canadian Labour

Last Updated: 16.01.07