Hazardous Substances

Employers have a general duty to ensure the health and safety of all of their employees while they are working.

If employees are likely to be exposed to a hazardous substance in the workplace, the employer is required to:

• assign a qualified person to investigate the risks;
• notify the health and safety committee or representative about the investigation;
• maintain a record of all hazardous substances used or stored in the workplace;
• ensure that each employee is made aware of every known or foreseeable health or safety hazard in the area where the employee works;
• develop and implement an employee training program for the prevention and control of hazards in the workplace; and
• ensure that employees in a supervisory or managerial role receive adequate health and safety training and are informed of the responsibilities they have under this part of the Code.

For their part, employees are required to notify their employers of any object or circumstance in the workplace that presents a danger to their health or safety or to that of their colleagues or of any other person whom the employer may authorize on the work site.