Employers in Ontario have to post a lot more than just the Ministry of Labour’s Employment Standards Poster in their workplaces. You may be required to have 30 or more documents and posters displayed in a location (or locations) where all your employees can see them.
Employers may have posting responsibilities under the following Acts:
- Employment Standards Act
- Workplace Safety and Insurance Act
- Occupational Health and Safety Act
- Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act
- Smoke-Free Ontario Act
You may also face requirements under other Acts and Regulations, depending on:
- The nature of your business,
- Identified hazards in your workplace, or
- Your industry sector
Why are your workplace postings so important?
One of the first things government inspectors will check during random, targeted and complaint-related inspections and audits are your workplace postings.
Inspectors will verify that you have displayed the required Acts and Regulations. They will also ask to see any other required documentation that shows workers have been provided information and instruction on tasks they are required to do.
Complying with these obligations ensures you have done an essential part of your due diligence to reasonably inform, instruct and educate employees on workplace rights, obligations, restrictions, workplace hazards and other important matters.
What must all employers post in their workplaces?
While there are several documents employers may need to have on display, here are the nine most important postings employers should start with:
- A copy of the Ontario Health and Safety Act
- The “Health & Safety at Work: Prevention Starts Here” poster
- A written general occupational health and safety policy signed by the employer and the highest level of management at the workplace
- Workplace violence and workplace harassment policies
- The WSIB’s “In Case of Injury” 1-2-3 poster (Form 82)
- Names and work locations of joint health and safety committee members (20+ employees only)
- An up-to-date version of the Employment Standards in Ontario poster from the Ministry of Labour
- No-smoking signs throughout the enclosed workplace, place or area over which the employer has control
- Accessible customer service policies or notices (for designated public sector organizations and large organizations)
What else should I know about required workplace postings?
A compliance checklist is a handy way to keep track of your posting requirements and we’ve created one that tells you which documents you need to display (including the 9 above), links you to the necessary documents and offers essential compliance information to help you make sure you have all the postings you need and they meet all requirements.
Some of these things are self-explanatory, but others are not.
After you look through the compliance checklist and figure out which required postings you need to add or update, you can find detailed information on what you need to do in The Human Resources Advisor Online, published by First Reference. It’s like Google for HR and payroll law and best practice.
Fred Stewart
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