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Discussions on Human Resources, Employment Law, Payroll and Internal Controls

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Young workers: Staying safe at work

With the summer months beginning this is the time when students are starting new jobs. These young workers and/or new workers are at a high risk for getting injured while at work. New workers are 3 times more likely to be injured during their first month than other, more experienced workers. In Ontario, according to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, between 2009 and 2013, 30 youth workers died in work related incidents and another 30,000 received injuries that led to lost time.

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Hot tips for summer student workplace supervision, safety and success!

This is the first summer that Ontario employers have new liability and responsibility to summer students who are with them in unpaid co-op or internships.  The Occupational Health and Safety Act coverage expanded to unpaid co-op students and learners in work placements, effective November 20, 2014.

For employers, this means that unpaid summer co-op students should be subject to the same training, orientation, supervision and safety requirements as paid young workers in the workplace.  While some employers might see summer students as a quick fix to cover for vacations and to complete extra projects, employers who commit to the safety and supervision of all students, both paid and unpaid will have more successful short-term and long-term outcomes in their organization.

1. Safety requirements

Occupational Health and Safety basic awareness training

This is now the second summer that the mandatory basic health and safety awareness training for employees is applicable to … Continue reading “Hot tips for summer student workplace supervision, safety and success!”

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The summer of our youth: Hiring students for the summer may be a good business strategy

Now that the summer is finally here, many of you may find your workplace peppered with summer student or recent grad employees. In fact, hiring students for the summer may be a good business strategy not only to fill human resources gaps created by employee vacations, but also to invest in a potential future workforce and to take advantage of government subsidies which may be available to help to fund student positions.

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Established in 1995, First Reference is the leading publisher of up to date, practical and authoritative HR compliance and policy databases that are essential to ensure organizations meet their due diligence and duty of care requirements.

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