What is a Ministry of Labour blitz?
The Ministry of Labour’s proactive inspection blitzes focus on sector-specific hazards, and are designed to raise awareness and increase compliance with health and safety legislation. They are part of the province’s Safe at Work Ontario compliance strategy. During a blitz inspection, inspectors focus on specific sectors, workplace areas or activities in which the targeted hazards may be present.
The blitzes are announced in advance and results are reported after they are completed. The ministry tracks each sector to determine if the blitzes result in a long-lasting increase in compliance and decrease in injuries.
What the law says
In Ontario, workplaces must allow a Ministry of Labour inspector into the workplace. During a blitz campaign, inspectors have been instructed to take a zero-tolerance approach, meaning that if a workplace is found to be non-compliant, the MOL will prosecute in some way. Recent hazards that have been targeted include:
- loading docks
- conveyor guarding and lockout
- musculoskeletal disorders
- young and new workers
- falls from heights
- forklifts and lifting devices
- fall hazards at construction and other sites
- workplace slips, trips and falls
- hazardous chemicals
How MOL blitzes can affect your business
MOL blitzes target hazards that can lead to high-cost injury claims. These claims result from injuries that cause fatalities, long-term disabilities, or by their nature tend to reoccur or become chronic. The high costs are passed along to employers in the form of higher WSIB assessments, insurance premiums, lost time, and lower productivity.
What you can do
- Be proactive: identify the hazards in your workplace that can cause injury or illness and establish a plan for how these hazards will be managed
- Get some help from your health and safety association to find out what training you need to ensure compliance before the inspector arrives
- Perform your own workplace audit
- Make your employees aware of the hazards
- Have a well-documented health and safety program visibly in place, and implement hazard-related strategies, tools and training
- Correct any deficiencies identified by a Ministry of Labour inspector
- Work collaboratively with the inspector