Quebec launches workplace safety toolkit
With the announcement that several different sectors of the economy will soon be reopening, Quebec’s workplace health and safety authority, the CNESST, has launched a virtual toolkit meant to help employees and employers maintain the sanitary requirements of the public health department in the workplace. The kit was developed by the CNESST in collaboration with the public health team with the objective of responding to the concerns of different workplaces regarding the measures to be implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“The slogan at the moment is: keep protecting ourselves,” said Jean Boulet, Minister of Labour, Employment and Social Solidarity. “The kit developed by the CNESST allows employers and workers to have the right tools to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. I invite all employers to take note of these tools and use them. Our government will not compromise on the health and safety of workers. I count on all of you to keep up with public health standards.”
The virtual kit includes a guide to health standards in the workplace regarding COVID-19, as well as two practical guides specifically for the manufacturing and retail sectors.
It also includes job aids that employers can print and customize for:
·The reopening of the workplace; ·Physical distancing;
·Hygiene and respiratory etiquette; ·Environmental health;
·Exclusion from the workplace and isolation of workers;
·Psychosocial risks in the workplace. The kit is supplemented by a summary sheet of sanitary measures implemented by the employer. Note that the kit will be updated over time to adapt to the measures and recommendations of Public Health. A mobile application with en electronic version of the toolkit is also available through the Google play and App stores.
“In this COVID-19 pandemic period the CNESST fully assumes its role as a leader in prevention,” said CNESST Director Manuelle Oudar. “It is essential to respond to the needs and concerns of our clientele and to equip them well The kit we are launching responds to the need for a framework so that all workplaces, large and small, can act in a coherent and efficient manner They now have all the tools they need to comply with the guidelines issued by the Government of Quebec.”
An English version of the guide is available at https://www.cnesst.gouv qc.ca/salle-de-presse/covid-19-info-en/ Pages/toolkit.aspx