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Are you a High Opportunity Company?

The Ministry of Labour (MOL) has replaced the High Risk and Last Chance initiatives with a single, combined program, using new criteria.

Launched in April this year, the five-year High-Opportunity Firm (HOF) Program is intended to help the Workplace Insurance & Safety Board (WSIB) and MOL meet an aggressive goals to reduce lost-time injuries by 35 per cent over the next five years.

 

Are you on the list? 

In the next few months, 11,000 service sector workplaces with room for improvement in their health and safety performance, will be approached by one of Ontario’s three prevention partners: the Ontario Service Safety Alliance (OSSA), Ministry of Labour (MOL), or Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB). 

The outreach program replaces the MOL High Risk and Last Chance initiatives with a single, combined program, using new criteria. It is a five-year program intended to help the WSIB and MOL meet an aggressive goal called the “Road to Zero”: to reduce lost-time injuries by 35 per cent over the next five years.

If you’re one of the 11,000 firms identified as “high opportunity,” this means you are being offered an opportunity to work voluntarily and collaboratively with OSSA professionals to build on the positive things you may already be doing to drive down injury rates at your firm rather then facing MOL orders or a Workwell audit.

 

Avoid surprises

If you suspect you might be identified as high opportunity, but haven't yet been contacted, be prepared by being informed. Here's how the initiative works:

• The MOL and WSIB assessed all 200,000 of the active firms registered with the WSIB prior to 2006, comparing each firm’s health and safety data with its predominant rate group; 37,000 firms were selected to receive assistance, 11,000 of them in the service sector.
• The criteria for selection uses WSIB data and rate groups; for example: 
• Overall injury and illness performance (as per lost-time and no-lost-time injury rates; claim costs; and growth in insurable earnings) in 2006;
• A traumatic fatality in 2005 or 2006;
• A record of safety incidents that is higher than that of the firm’s peer group;
• An escalation of safety incidents year over year;
• Claims associated with one or more of the four priority hazard areas.

Don't walk this road alone

OSSA is your WSIB-approved provider of health and safety solutions. OSSA consultants have the experience and expertise you need to get out of trouble, and more important, help you build a durable health and safety culture in your organization.

Ask for these OSSA interventions:

• Compliance checklist: it will walk you through the regulations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. 
• Professional review of your Joint Health & Safety Committee; health and safety policy and program; hazards; and orientation training. Find out what MOL inspectors typically look for.
• Practice Workwell Audit: be prepared by voluntarily stepping through the process.
• Customized recovery plan for your firm.
• Health and safety compliance training.

OSSA Risk Assessment, Hazard & Compliance Workshop Program

In an effort to help build and develop sustainable and cost-effective health & safety programs in HOF businesses, the OSSA has developed and implemented a new program. 

This new cross-province Risk Assessment program is intended for firms facing challenges in running and implementing their own health & safety programs.  The program helps you understand what the health & safety system in Ontario requires, where your gaps and problems might occur, and how to build and develop a sustainable and effective health & safety program within your business.

The program has two parts - an introductory Risk Assessment session, followed by two Group Consulting sessions that look at compliance-related factors and hazard assessment for your business.  These sessions are designed to help your company position itself for long-term health & safety success, to improve your health & safety results, reducing your premiums and saving you money.

For a complete schedule of upcoming Risk assessment, Hazard & Compliance workshops in your area, please go here.

 

If you have questions or need help, call the OSSA at 1-888-478-6772 or e-mail info@ossa.com. 

 

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