Employer recognition: guidelines for applying to have your company recognized by the Chief Prevention Officer

Overview

If your organization has an accredited occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS), you may be eligible to apply for formal recognition by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development’s Chief Prevention Officer (CPO).

Organizations that receive CPO recognition may be eligible for financial incentives from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB). To receive these incentives, you must meet additional criteria set by the WSIB.

This guideline was developed to help you complete the employer recognition application.

Who is eligible

To receive CPO recognition, your organization must:

• have implemented an OHSMS that meets a CPO-accredited standard or has been accredited by the CPO
• have been audited by a registered lead auditor within 12 months prior to submitting your application, and corrected any issues identified in the audit to the satisfaction of the lead auditor and the audit has been closed
• meet all CPO employer recognition criteria

It is strongly recommended you verify the lead auditor’s credentials with the certification/governing body prior to contracting an auditor to conduct the third-party audit.

How to apply for employer recognition

Step 1: create an applicant profile

Create an account in the Employer Portal.

Step 2: prepare and gather the documents you need to support your application

Please refer to the following document checklist:

• completed application form
• Auditor Proof of Registration
• audit report from lead auditor
• audit certificate
• SOSE Action Plan (SAP) Audit (if COR2020 and applicable)

Step 3: access the Supporting Ontario’s Safe Employers (SOSE) main page

Once you are logged in the Employer Portal, select the SOSE tab on the left menu, then select the Apply for the SOSE recognition button.

Step 4: complete the application in the portal

Any false or misleading information, reference or documents will result in your application being rejected. An employer that is recognized by the CPO based on submission of false, misleading or inaccurate information will have their employer recognition revoked.

Learn how to complete the application.

Step 5: submit your application

Complete your application and upload required documents to the Employer Portal. Once you have uploaded all documents, select “submit” to submit your application. You will receive a confirmation email from the ministry with information on how to track your application progress.

Failure to provide all required documents may result in the rejection of your application.

If you have any difficulty submitting your application package, please email SOSE@ontario.ca.

After you apply

Once you submit your application:

• the ministry will notify you by email or mail of your status
• you must notify the ministry of any changes, additional information and/or references. Changes may delay the processing time.

Application process

The information you provide in the application is collected under section 7.6.4(1) of the OHSA. The process for the evaluation of that information is authorized under section 7.6.1(1) of the act.

This information is strictly confidential and will not be disclosed to any third parties or used for any other means unless authorized by law.

Section A: Application information

1. Applicant information

This section requires you to provide:

• contact information
• details about your organization and your organization’s OHSMS

Canada Revenue Agency Registered Business Number

The business number (BN) is a unique number, assigned to a business by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), that simplifies and streamlines the way businesses deal with federal, provincial and municipal governments. Your business number can be found in your 15-digit CRA account number (see below for an example). Please use your 9-digit BN or your 15-digit CRA account number in your application.

• Example CRA account number: 123456789TR0001
  • Business number: 123456789
  • Government program: TR
  • Reference number/account: 0001

Ontario uses and collects the business number when interacting with businesses in the province.

WSIB Account Number

Once CPO recognized, your organization may be eligible to receive time-based financial incentives from the WSIB. To be eligible, you must provide:

• the WSIB account number(s) associated with your OHSMS
• consent for the ministry to forward this information to the WSIB

In addition, your organization will also need to meet the criteria as set by the WSIB.

Designated contact information

The application must include the information of a designated contact who:

• is an employee of the organization
• performs their work duties within the scope of the OHSMS
• has knowledge of OHSMS implementation, monitoring and its continued improvement

Organization and OHSMS details

In this section, select “industry-based,” “organization-specific” or “national/international management system standard.” The application will change based on your choice. Complete all sections that appear. Please provide:

• the name of the standard or the name your organization has selected for your OHSMS
• a brief description of your organization and what it does, including any operations, activities, process, products and goods or services
• the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code(s) by which your organization is classified, and that fall under the scope of your OHSMS
• the scope to which your OHSMS has been developed and implemented (provide the scope identified on your official certificate, if there is no scope provided on the certificate, provide the scope that the third-party auditor used to conduct the audit)
• the total number of workers in your organization
• the number of workers the OHSMS applies to (this may be the same as the total number if it applies to everyone)
• the average number of work hours per year for workers under this OHSMS
• the date that your OHSMS was first implemented in your workplace(s)

If you are applying with an organization-specific OHSMS, you will also need to provide the CPO Accreditation ID number given to you when your OHSMS was accredited.

2. Alternate contact information

Alternate contact information

Provide the information of a contact who can be reached in the event the ministry cannot reach the designated contact. This person must be authorized to act on behalf of your organization as it relates to the OHSMS.

Certification

The designated contact and alternate contact are both required to read, understand and agree before completing this section.

Section B: Auditor information

Read about the requirements and audit criteria, including lead auditor credentials and qualifications, in the CPO employer recognition criteria.

Auditor contact information

Complete the information for the lead auditor.

If your audit was done by a team, you only need to include the contact information of the registered, certified lead auditor.

Registration information

This section is used to verify the lead auditor meets the required credentials and qualifications, and that they are in good standing with a certifying or governing body acknowledged by the CPO. If we are unable to do verify the lead auditor’s credentials and qualifications, the audit will not be considered valid and the application will not be processed.

Provide the valid:

• lead auditor’s registration/unique identifier number (if available)
• name and contact information for the certified or governing body the lead auditor is registered with

Auditor’s proof of registration card

Registered lead auditors generally hold a registration card with their name, registration/unique identifier number and certifying/governing body.

If the lead auditor is unable to produce this card, another official document may be provided if it contains the same information. This is so we can verify the credentials and qualifications and that the lead auditor is in good standing with the certification body.

If the lead auditor’s card (or other document) is invalid or found to be fraudulent, your application will not be processed.

Section C: Documents and attestation

1. Attestation

Attestations are used as part of the employer recognition application process to confirm, verify and provide evidence that the criteria have been met.

If you do not complete this section, we cannot accept your application, and the review process will be delayed.

2. Supporting documents

Make sure to keep original versions for your records. Upload your documents to the portal.

When saving your documents to submit with the application, use the naming protocols below.

Contact us

Contact Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development’s Prevention Office by:

• Toll-free: 1-877-202-0008
• TTY: 1-855-653-9260
• Email: SOSE@ontario.ca