Alberta labour laws overhauled
New rights and increased supports given to workers
The Alberta government introduced massive changes to provincial labour law Monday, trumpeting the overhaul as a way to better support injured workers and modernize health and safety rules in the workplace.
Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act included enshrining the right for employees to refuse dangerous work, creating work site health and safety committees and expanding rules to prevent workplace violence and harassment.
Proposed changes to the Workers’ Compensation Act included creating a lump-sum fatality benefit worth $90,772 for a worker’s loved ones, increasing benefits for young workers who suffer longterm injuries on the job, as well as launching an office to help people navigate the compensation system.
“With the changes ... we look forward to having a sustainable, fair, effective workers’ compensation system and we hope to see a reduction in injuries and illness through the occupational health and safety side,” Labour Minister Christina Gray told a Monday news conference.
Currently, OHS rules stipulate employees have a responsibility to refuse dangerous work, but that message doesn’t place enough of the onus for safety on employers, Gray said.
“By creating a right to refuse, we are essentially making it so that the employer becomes more responsible,” she added.
It’s one of the core changes praised by Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan.
“The new legislation removes all the ambiguity and makes it clear workers will not be harmed in any way; they will not face any reprisals,” he said.
The slew of changes outlined in Bill 30, An Act to Protect the Health and Well-being of Working Albertans, stem from the first comprehensive government review of the OHS act in four decades. An independent review of the WCB system likewise spurred the changes, marking the first overhaul of that legislation in more than 15 years.
“This is such a significant advance for workplace safety that it almost brings tears to my eyes,” McGowan said Monday. “For decades now, Alberta has been a laggard when it comes to health and safety.”
He added he believes the legislation will change the culture at the WCB, which he described as being too focused on the corporate bottom line — “(It will) return to its original purpose, which is to provide support and assistance to injured workers.”
Donna Van Bruggen, who spoke about the 2012 death of her son David Van Bruggen, 35, in Lethbridge, was on hand after the legislation was tabled.
“He was struck by a forklift at his work site and killed instantly,” Van Bruggen said, adding he left behind a wife and four young children. “The ripple effect caused by these tragedies is endless.
“I cannot undo what happened to him, but I can share David’s story as a way to prevent other workplace tragedies and to spare another family from … having to face the agony of coping with a preventable tragedy,” she said.
The WCB paid out 144 fatality claims in 2016, as well as more than 44,500 disabling injury claims. Lost time claims that year totalled more than 23,600.
Changes to the WCB system would cost an additional $94.5 million annually, which would come from the agency’s Accident Fund surplus. The fund, established with employer premiums, contained $10.5 billion at 2016 year-end.
“Employers will not see a rate increase this year,” Gray said, adding the WCB maintains responsibility for managing the fund. “We’ve rejected the idea that government will tell the WCB how to manage any surpluses in the future … They will be reviewing their policies.”
Until now, Alberta was the only province without joint work site health and safety committees.
The committees empower workers and help to identify workplace risks, said Energy Safety Canada chief executive John Rhind. “In terms of smaller organizations that have not had something like this in place … we really do need to help those employers because this will be a culture change.”
The NDP’s latest bill follows the passing of Bill 17, the Fair and Family-Friendly Workplaces Act, in June. It made significant changes to provincial labour law, ranging from rules on youth employment to how unions are certified.
If Bill 30 is passed, WCB changes would take effect Jan. 1 and OHS changes would follow June 1. Key proposed changes to the OHS Act: Enshrining the right for employees to refuse dangerous work, bringing Alberta into line with other Canadian provinces. Employees would still be paid while their refusal to work is investigated. Employers with 20 or more workers will be required to create a joint work site health and safety committee if work lasts 90 days or more. Smaller employers with five to 19 workers will need to have a health and safety representative. Alberta is currently the only province without such committees. A serious injury would be reported when a worker is admitted to hospital. Currently, the threshold for reporting a serious injury is a two-day hospitalization. Employers will be required to report “near miss” incidents to OHS, referring to a situation that may have caused serious injury but didn’t. Definitions for workplace violence and harassment will be expanded to include threats and coercion. OHS laws will be reviewed every five years. Key proposed changes to the WCB system: Remove the cap for maximum insurable earnings, currently pegged at $98,700 per year. This means injured workers earning more than that would be able to receive 90 per cent of their expected annual earnings. Create a lumpsum fatality benefit of $90,772.20 for the loved ones of workers who die on the job. Give the WCB appeals commission two years to launch formal reviews. Currently reviews must be launched within a year. The WCB will also be able to give workers support while decisions are under review. Create a fair practices office to help workers navigate the WCB system. Extend coverage for psychological injuries, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for all occupations. The PTSD presumptive coverage for first responders will remain the same.