News
Regulation Review: Part 9
Workers in Manitoba have legislated regulations to help keep us safe, day in and day out – no matter what job we do. These regulations are a part of the framework for building safe workplaces in Manitoba.
The Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health Act and associated regulations are in place to protect you – the worker – from workplace hazards and the risks they present. Manitoba Regulation 217/2006 is a 44-part document containing requirements and guidelines for workplaces, including site-specific rules and other valuable information to prevent harm from coming to workers.
Over the coming months, Safety Check is profiling one part of the Regulation in each issue to help remind you of the Regulation’s specifics and to help keep safety top-of-mind for all Manitobans.
This issue, it’s Regulation Part 9 – Working Alone or in Isolation.
The term working alone refers to any time someone is the lone worker for an employer at a given workplace at a given time and is not directly supervised by the employer or another designated supervisor.
Working in isolation means working in circumstances where assistance is not readily available in the event of injury, ill health or other emergency.
According to Regulation Part 9, an employer must identify (in consultation with the committee/representatives/workers), the risks arising from the conditions and circumstances of any employee’s work and take steps to eliminate or reduce those risks.
Workplaces must develop SAFE procedures for working alone, put them in place and then train workers.
These procedures must include the establishment of an effective communication system consisting of radio, phone or cellular phone or another means that provides effective communications and any of the following: system of regular contact between employer and worker, limitations or prohibitions of specific activities, establishment of training requirements and provision of emergency supplies for use in traveling or working under extreme cold or other inclement weather conditions.
The employer must post these procedures in a noticeable location and review / revise them at least every three years.
For more information, read the Regulation in its entirety.