Published plans and annual reports 2015-2016: Ministry of Labour

Ministry Overview

Ministry Vision

Ontario’s workplaces are safe, healthy, fair and harmonious and balanced with the need to support a competitive and sustainable economy.

Ministry Mission

Ministry of Labour’s (MOL) mission is to advance safe, fair and harmonious workplace practices that are essential to the social and economic well-being of the people of Ontario.

Ministry Contribution to Key Priorities and Results

MOL supports two key government priorities: creating a Supportive and Dynamic Business Environment; and, Reduced Poverty, Inequality and Exclusion. In addition, MOL provides services in the public interest.

MOL contributes to these priorities through the efficient delivery of public services in its three primary areas of responsibility:

• Occupational Health and Safety
• Employment Rights and Responsibilities
• Labour Relations

The Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Program, in collaboration with system partners such as the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) and the Health and Safety Associations (HSAs), aims to reduce and prevent fatalities, illness and injuries across all of Ontario’s workplaces. A safe work environment contributes to higher productivity and lower employment costs, thus contributing to a supportive and dynamic business environment that will attract jobs and investment to Ontario.

The Employment Rights and Responsibilities (ES) Program helps protect vulnerable workers by creating fair workplaces thereby supporting the government’s priority of Reduction of Poverty, Inequality and Exclusion through enforcement of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and the Employment Protection of Foreign Nationals Act (Live-in Caregivers and Others), 2009.

The ES Program also creates a level playing field for employers, thereby reinforcing a competitive business environment that attracts jobs and investment to Ontario.

The Labour Relations Program supports fair and stable workplaces and increases productivity by facilitating effective labour relations dispute resolution, making Ontario an attractive place for investment.

Ministry Priorities

MOL continues to support Ontario’s commitment to meet its fiscal targets and eliminate the deficit by 2017-18. It does this by reviewing its programs and services regularly to ensure resources are allocated appropriately to get maximum value and to deliver the important work that Ontarians expect in an effective and efficient manner.

The government identified a number of priorities for the Ministry of Labour over the next few years. These priorities fall under a number of broad categories and the ministry has already begun activities to support these initiatives:

• Reflecting the Changing Workplace – The ministry has appointed two special advisers to help lead broad public consultations on how the province’s labour relations and employment standards legislation could be amended to best protect workers while supporting business in the changing economy. These special advisers are Ontario labour lawyer Michael Mitchell and the Honourable John C. Murray, a former Ontario Superior Court justice.
• Developing a Wage Gap Strategy – the ministry will work with the Ontario Women’s Directorate and other ministries to develop a strategy that helps close the wage gap between men and women in the current economy. The existence of a gender wage gap is indicative of barriers facing women that prevent them from making a full contribution to the economy of the province. A Steering Committee will lead the consultations and the development of a wage gap strategy.
• Protecting Vulnerable Workers – MOL introduced Bill 18, the Stronger Workplaces for a Stronger Economy Act, 2014 which was passed November 20^th, 2014. This Bill amends several pieces of legislation to better protect vulnerable workers and creates a level playing field for employers that follow the rules. These changes also support the government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. The priority of protecting vulnerable workers is also supported by the Sexual Violence and Harassment Action Plan introduced by the government in March 2015. The goal is to combat and raise awareness of sexual violence, harassment and discrimination and improve support for victims. The plan is supported by several ministries, including the Ministry of Labour, which will do its part to protect workers in the workplace.
• Promoting Occupational Health and Safety – The ministry will do this by enhancing the ministry’s prevention capacity to protect workers’ health and safety and lead workplace accident prevention efforts. As a first step, the ministry will work with the construction sector to develop an action plan.
• Working with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) – In partnership with the WSIB , the ministry will work to ensure long-term sustainability of the province’s workers’ compensation system while balancing the interests of injured workers and employers.
• Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace – On March 5^th, 2015, the Minister of Labour hosted a very successful summit on work-related traumatic mental stress which brought together workers, employers, and experts from a wide range of sectors. More than 150 participants shared their experiences and workplace best practices in dealing with traumatic mental stress. Traumatic mental stress is a significant issue and MOL will continue discussions on how on best address it.
• Collaborating on Collective Bargaining and Reform of the Interest Arbitration system – The ministry is building partnerships and working horizontally within government and the broader public sector to: improve collective bargaining processes and outcomes through rationalized bargaining models; and, to make more labour data and information available to bargaining parties to encourage better informed decision making.

The ministry will focus on these priorities in consultation with other ministries, stakeholders and the public to advance safe, fair and respectful workplace practices that are essential to the social and economic well-being of the people of Ontario.

This work will also contribute to growing the economy and helping to create good jobs.

Transformation at the Ministry of Labour

The ministry is committed to sustaining the effective and efficient delivery of programs that protect workers’ health and safety and their employment rights, and support timely resolution of disputes to assure a competitive economy. To meet our commitments, the ministry must continue to adapt to changes in the environment it operates within – including globalization and its effects on Ontario’s economy and the labour market, lower rates of unionization, and the growth of precarious work.

To respond to these and other challenges successfully, the ministry must continue to innovate by using data effectively, and by looking for ways to continuously improve results and services to the public. Staff from across the ministry have come together to bring their knowledge, experience and creative thinking to develop strategies for meeting the ministry’s biggest challenges.

In 2014, the ministry moved to implement the innovation initiatives launched in 2013: regulatory modernization, small business engagement in health and safety, vulnerable worker engagement, initiatives to strengthen workplace responsibilities, building a data warehouse to provide a foundation for analytics, and the initiative to transform public sector collective bargaining.

The ministry launched a risk assessment project in 2013 that demonstrated the potential value of risk based approaches to occupational health and safety regulation. Based on the proof of concept, the ministry has begun to move forward with risk management in the OHS context. The goal is to enable the OHS system partners to work together with employers and workers in reducing risks to worker health and safety sector by sector, in a way that is measurable. The ministry has begun to act on the results of risk assessment in the underground mining sector, and will move forward in a range of additional sectors.

The transformation work the ministry has done to date provides a foundation for moving forward on the priorities identified above for the Ministry of Labour. The ministry will focus on these priorities in consultation with other ministries, stakeholders and the public to advance safe, fair and respectful workplace practices that are essential to the social and economic well-being of the people of Ontario.

This work will also contribute to growing the economy and helping to create good jobs.

MOL’s key strategies support the government’s key priorities$

Priorities

• Reduced Poverty Inequality and Exclusion
• Supportive and Dynamic Business Environment
• Other Public Interest

Results

• More competitive and attractive economy
• Increased productivity in workplaces
• Strong workplace culture of health and safety
• Safer and healthier workplaces
• Fair and equitable workplaces
• Fair working conditions and paid wages for vulnerable and young workers
• Close the gender wage gap
• Protection from sexual violence and harassment in the workplace
• Improved labour relations stability in the Broader Public Sector

Major activities and strategies

• Occupational Health and Safety:
  • Province-wide Health and Safe Ontario Workplaces strategy.
  • Inspect high-hazards/high cost workplaces to reduce lost time injuries.
  • Develop and Implement Action Plans for High Hazards sectors.
  • Work with the WSIB to ensure long-term sustainability while balancing interests of injured workers and employers.
• Labour Relations:
  • Facilitate labour relations dispute resolution to create fairness and stability in the workplace.
  • Update and promote best practices in labour relations.
  • Review and update Labour laws to reflect the changing economy.
• Employment Rights and Responsibilities:
  • Conduct proactive inspections in high risk workplaces.
  • Resolve claims for unpaid wages.
  • Achieve a level playing field for employers and workers to ensure competitiveness.
  • Review and update Employment laws to reflect the changing economy.

Performance measures

• Occupational Health and Safety:
  • Maintain lost time injury rate at or below 1.01 for Schedule 1 employers and at or below 1.85 for Schedule 2 employers
• Labour Relations:
  • 95% of all collective agreement settlements to be achieved without a work stoppage
• Employment Rights and Responsibilities:
  • Complete 3,000 proactive inspections to promote compliance with the Employment Standards Act, 2000

Ministry Programs and Activities

Occupational Health and Safety

The aim of MOL’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) program is to reduce or eliminate workplace fatalities, injuries and illness primarily through two closely linked areas of OHS: prevention and enforcement. MOL works closely with workplace health and safety system partners to improve occupational health and safety across the province.

The foundation of MOL’s OHS program is the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and its regulations, which establish rights and duties of workers, employers, and key institutions. Among other things, the OHSA requires compliance with minimum standards to protect the health and safety of Ontario workers. The OHSA applies to all workplaces across all business sectors of Ontario except for work activities undertaken by owner/residents in their own homes, farming operations, businesses operated by self-employed persons, and workplaces regulated by the federal government.

Occupational Health and Safety Prevention

Key components of the OHS Prevention program include:

• A Chief Prevention Officer with a province-wide mandate for prevention of workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities;
• A multi-stakeholder Prevention Council to advise the Chief Prevention Officer on a wide range of occupational health and safety issues; and,
• Funding and oversight responsibilities for the six Health and Safety Associations (HSAs).

The Prevention Council consists of eleven members, including four labour and four employer representatives, a non-unionized worker representative, an occupational health and safety expert, and a representative from the WSIB. In addition to providing strategic advice to the CPO, Council members engage with OHS system partners and stakeholder networks in support of the Prevention Office’s mandate.

The six Health and Safety Associations, which are designated under the OHSA and funded by MOL, offer occupational health and safety training, education, awareness and specialized clinic services. The Health and Safety Associations are comprised of:

Sector-focused Safe Workplace Associations:

• Infrastructure Health and Safety Association
• Public Services Health and Safety Association
• Workplace Safety North
• Workplace Safety and Prevention Services

A medical clinic:

• Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers

A training centre:

• Workers Health and Safety Centre

Key Prevention Office Responsibilities and Activities

Under the leadership of the CPO, with advice from the Prevention Council, the Prevention Office is responsible for a wide array of activities, which include:

• Implementing a province-wide integrated occupational health and safety strategy, designed to integrate/coordinate planning and activities among the system partners and stakeholders.
• Developing enhanced data management and performance measures that will improve information about occupational health and safety across the province.
• Funding and oversight of Health and Safety Associations (HSAs) through Transfer Payment Agreements and monitoring of their compliance with those agreements.
• Funding the delivery of health and safety training, consulting, products and diagnostic services (through the Health and Safety Associations) to workplace health and safety representatives, health and safety committee members and employers.
• Administering occupational health and safety research funding and prevention grants.
• Developing and administering mandatory training programs and requirements
• Establishing requirements for certification of members of Joint Health and Safety Committees (JHSC) and certification of members who meet those requirements.
• Increasing health and safety awareness through communication and outreach.
• Coordinating MOL’s young worker education, awareness and injury prevention programs.

Province-wide Integrated Health and Safety Strategy

The Prevention program has developed a comprehensive workplace injury and illness prevention strategy called Healthy and Safe Ontario Workplaces, A Strategy for Transforming Occupational Health and Safety, which builds on the recommendations of the 2010 Expert Advisory Panel Report on Occupational Health and Safety. The Strategy provides a framework which will guide and align the Ministry’s health and safety prevention and enforcement efforts going forward and will work with business and worker groups and the provincial occupational health and safety partners to create a culture where occupational health and safety is at the centre of the workplace.

Implementation of the OHS Strategy involves the development and implementation of action plans for each of the six strategic priority areas shown above. Planning will include participation from relevant OHS partners. Implementation will require strengthening the alignment of MOL’s transfer payment programs with the strategy, including:

• Tracking Health and Safety Association’s activities according to strategic priority,
• Aligning research investments, and
• Optimizing the impact of grant programs.

To date, the Prevention program has developed a Small Business Action Plan, the Falls from Heights Prevention Action Plan and the Ergonomic Action Plan. In 2015-2016 MOL will turn its attention to Vehicles and Mobility Equipment and Occupational Disease which are also high priorities. MOL is also moving forward on the Vulnerable Worker Action Plan. Reporting of implementation of Action Plans is published in an annual report that is made available to the public.

Details of Prevention Office’s achievements are set out in MOL’s 2013-14 Annual Report.

OHS Enforcement

Another key component of the OHS program is enforcement. Enforcement activities are focused on high hazard workplaces to ensure compliance with the OHSA and its regulations before injuries occur. Occupational health and safety inspectors also conduct investigations as a result of a work refusal, complaint, injury, illness or fatality.

The OHSA and its regulations impose requirements and duties on workplace parties to minimize the risk of injuries on the job and provides for the enforcement of the law where compliance has not been achieved voluntarily. Ministry health and safety inspectors have broad powers to enforce the OHSA. This includes the power to inspect any workplace; investigate any potential hazardous situation and work refusal; order compliance with the Act and related regulations; and/or, commence a prosecution, when warranted.

Safe At Work Ontario

As part of the Healthy and Safe Ontario Workplaces strategy, Safe At Work Ontario focuses on compliance, specifically enforcement and monitoring, and is designed to:

• Reduce workplace injuries and illness;
• Bring improvement to the health and safety culture of workplaces;
• Reduce the burden on Ontario’s health care system;
• Avoid costs for employers and the WSIB; and,
• Provide a level playing field for compliant companies.

Most often the incidents that lead to injury or death are preventable or avoidable. That’s why Safe At Work Ontario takes a proactive approach to safety inspections.

The foundation of the compliance strategy consists of three pillars which also support the Healthy and Safe Ontario Workplaces strategy:

1. Enforcement of the OHSA primarily through proactive inspections under blitz initiatives as well as provincial and regional initiatives.
2. Compliance and the provision of information to assist workplaces to become compliant through publishing sector specific enforcement strategies and providing support for health and safety blitzes and initiatives.
3. Partnership, where the ministry works with stakeholders to refine ministry enforcement efforts.

Safe At Work Ontario uses a risk based approach to determine which businesses require inspection and includes factors, such as:

• Injury rates and associated costs;
• A company’s health and safety compliance history;
• The presence of new, young or otherwise vulnerable workers;
• Hazards inherent to the business of the workplace;
• New businesses,
• Size of businesses, and,
• Specific events or incidents (e.g., critical injuries or fatal injuries, or injuries due to workplace violence).

Enforcement – Enforcement blitzes are a key component of the Safe At Work Ontario strategy. Through Enforcement Blitzes, MOL inspectors focus on raising awareness of key workplace hazards and identify and inspect workplaces where these hazards might be present. In 2015-16, the Ministry of Labour will be conducting 9 blitzes across three main sectors in Ontario: construction, industrial, and mining sectors. The blitzes continue to be well received by employer and labour stakeholders.

Compliance – The Safe At Work Ontario strategy builds on what the ministry has learned from previous enforcement activities and increases the level of transparency to the public:

• Sector specific plans are posted on the Ministry of Labour’s website;
• Annual consultations provide an opportunity for stakeholders to shape future strategies and initiatives;
• Videos such as Fall Hazard Safety in Low Rise Construction, Slips Trips and Falls and other Kitchen Hazards, Workplace Violence and Harassment, Forklift Safety Inspection, and Auto Body Repair Shop Safety Inspection provide insight for employers on inspections; and,
• All blitz activities along with support material for employers, such as posters and fact sheets, are posted on the Ministry of Labour’s website in advance. Results are generally posted within 90 days of the end of the blitz.

Partnership – The Ministry of Labour continues to build on its strong partnerships within Ontario’s occupational health and safety system, including the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), Health and Safety Associations (HSAs), and the Institute for Work and Health (IWH). Ontario’s Health and Safety Associations provide training programs, products and services to the province’s employers and workers. Firms with poor health and safety records may be identified for inspection by the Ministry of Labour and engaged by an HSA for health and safety education and training.

Lost-Time Injury Rates

The key measure the ministry uses to determine if the impact of the coordinated activities of the workplace health and safety system is the Lost-time Injury (LTI rate), which is based on data collected and reported by the WSIB.

The table below shows the historical trend for the LTI rates for Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 employers from 2004. Schedule 1 employers operate under the collective liability insurance principle. The WSIB reported a Schedule 1 LTI rate of 0.95 for 2013 – down from 1.01 from 2012. Schedule 2 employers are individually responsible for the full cost of the accident claims filed by their workers. The WSIB reported a Schedule 2 LTI rate of 1.85 for 2013 – no change from 2012.

Beginning in 2015, the Ministry of Labour will track only the LTI rate for Schedule 1 employers and will work towards reducing the LTI rate for this group to 0.87 or lower.

Further information on Ministry of Labour initiatives to protect workers can be obtained from the Ministry’s website.

Employment Rights and Responsibilities – Employment Standards Program

Protect Vulnerable Workers and Support Poverty Reduction

The Ministry of Labour’s Employment Standards Program is part of the Ministry’s Employment Rights and Responsibilities mandate and is a key contributor to the creation and maintenance of workplaces that promote a more competitive business environment, a more engaged workforce, and a level playing field for employers.

The program administers and enforces the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) and the Employment Protection of Foreign Nationals Act (Live-in Caregivers and Others), 2009 (EPFNA). Compliance with these laws and Regulations is promoted through activities focusing on prevention (education, outreach and partnerships), inspections, investigations and enforcement.

The program’s activities ensure that Ontario employees, including vulnerable workers, are protected by minimum workplace standards in respect to wages and working conditions.

The program provides information to employers and employees through various sources that explain respective rights and responsibilities under the ESA and the EPFNA. Much of this information is available in multiple languages. Program services are delivered through regional/field offices with enforcement staff that investigate and resolve complaints about employers who may not be complying with their obligations under the ESA and the EPFNA. Field staff also conduct proactive inspections of workplace practices to enforce and promote compliance.

In delivering its mandate, the Employment Standards program supports Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy, the overall goal of which is to break the cycle of poverty through housing support, fair wages and working conditions, community empowerment and improving the success of children in school.

The ministry has been working to modernize the Employment Standards program on all fronts including:

• Improving its investigation processes to better serve those who need our help. A two-step process ensures claims are considered for early resolution and parties are given an opportunity to resolve the issue.
• Increasing the availability of compliance tools, resources and interactive online calculators for both employers and employees.
• Providing a multilingual toll-free information centre to inform employees and employers about their employment rights and responsibilities.
• Delivering more education, outreach and partnership activities to better inform employees and employers across multiple languages about the ESA.
• Making available videos on YouTube and on the Ministry website about complying with the ESA, what to expect during an inspection, and illegal deductions from wages.
• Offering a series of interactive tools and calculators on its website.

Increasing Fairness for Employees and Businesses

In 2014-15, the Stronger Workplaces for a Stronger Economy Act, 2014 received Royal Assent and makes numerous amendments to labour legislation:

The Employment Standards Act, 2000:

• Indexes minimum wage to inflation
• Eliminates the $10,000 cap on orders to pay wages with respect to any unpaid wages that come due on or after February 20, 2015
• Increases the time limits on recovery of wages from 6 months / 1 year to 2 years with respect to any unpaid wages that come due on or after February 20, 2015
• Requires employers to provide all employees with a copy of the ESA poster
• Gives ESOs authority to require an employer to conduct a self-audit
• Imposes joint and several liability on temporary help agencies and their clients for unpaid regular wages, overtime pay, public holiday pay and premium pay for public holidays (comes into force on November 20, 2015)

The Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (Live-in Caregivers and Others), 2009:

• Expands coverage to all foreign nationals employed (or seeking employment) in Ontario under an immigration or foreign temporary employee program. (comes into force on November 20, 2015)

The Occupational Health and Safety Act:

• Expands the definition of worker to include unpaid co-op students, certain other learners and trainees participating in a work placement in Ontario.

Specifically, the new definition of worker now includes:

• Unpaid secondary school students who are participating in a work experience program, authorized by the school board that operates the school in which the students are enrolled,
• Other unpaid learners participating in a program approved by a post-secondary institution, and,
• Any unpaid trainees who are not employees for the purposes of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) because they meet certain conditions.

Investigating Complaints and Claims

The Ministry of Labour receives complaints from employees against employers for alleged contraventions of the ESA, 2000 such as unpaid wages or termination pay. Ministry staff investigate these complaints and attempt to recover monies owed to the employees when contraventions are found. The Employment Standards program continues to make changes to improve and expedite the intake, investigation and decision-making processes for claims to aid in early claims resolution, improve service delivery, and shorten wait times. All claims are investigated in the order that they are received.

The following table shows the historical trend of claims investigations received and completed by the Employment Standards program.

Employment standards claims are received at a central claims processing centre in Sault Ste. Marie. Claims can be filed online 24/7, by mail or by fax. The Provincial Claims Centre (PCC) processes over 15,000 employment standards claims per year and handles over 20,000 telephone calls and thousands of documents annually. As part of the initial investigation process, claims are also investigated for possible early resolution at the PCC.

Note: 2010-11 and 2011-12 completed claims investigations reflect the work of additional temporary resources and funding (ending March 31, 2012) for the Employment Standards Task Force to eliminate the claims backlog.

2012-13 completed claims investigations reflect reduced number of staff working on claims as modernization strategy focuses on a more proactive approach to enforcing the ESA and timing of recruitment and training of new ESOs to replace retiring staff.

Enhanced Proactive Inspections

In addition to claims, employment standards officers also conduct proactive inspections of workplaces.

The use of proactive inspections educates and makes the employer aware of their employment standards responsibilities, helps identify and deter non-compliance before violations arise and complaints are filed, and makes MOL's presence known in high-risk sectors.

In 2014-15 a total of 2,415 inspections were completed, including 413 compliance check inspections. There are 35 ESOs dedicated to conducting proactive inspections.

An increased investment in the Dedicated Enforcement Team increased the number of officers to 35 ESOs as of December 1, 2014; with a view to further increasing the complement in 2015-16. The additional investment means that the team will conduct a minimum of 3,000 proactive inspections in 2015-16 and significantly increase the levels of unpaid wages recovered for higher numbers of vulnerable workers.

The team will continue to focus on repeat violators and sectors with a history of non-compliance and those that employ the most vulnerable workers. By preventing ESA violations, MOL can make a positive difference in the most vulnerable sectors.

Education, Outreach and Partnership

The Education, Outreach and Partnership (EOP) strategy is a Ministry of Labour initiative designed to create an environment where employers and employees understand their rights and obligations under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA).

Annual stakeholder consultations are held as part of the EOP strategy. This consultation is designed to help the program cultivate relationships and create dialogue with key internal parties (such as field staff) and external stakeholder groups representing the interests of small business employers and vulnerable workers (including young workers and newcomers). The advice and recommendations gleaned from these annual consultations feed directly into proactive enforcement and education/outreach planning for the following fiscal year. The program held its third annual stakeholder consultation in December 2014.

The program has developed a series of web-based tools which are available on the Ministry of Labour website at Ontario.ca/ESAtools. These tools are a key part of the supports and services available to help employers and employees be more self-reliant in resolving employer-employee issues and be more compliant with the ESA. The tools have been used more than 5 million times to date and over 80% of satisfaction survey respondents say they find the tools to be helpful.

The EOP conducts ongoing outreach efforts throughout the year focusing on three key groups: small business employers, young workers and newcomers. Outreach efforts involve forming partnerships with key employer and employee advocacy groups; carrying out campaigns aimed at promoting awareness of ES material (e.g., hosting links on stakeholder websites, developing and distributing toolkits featuring ready-to-use information for stakeholders to copy-and-paste into their newsletters, websites, etc); leveraging inter-ministerial partnerships to reach target groups; and identifying outreach opportunities within stakeholder structures (i.e. stakeholder newsletters, professional development workshops for employment and settlement counsellors).

The Employment Standards Information Centre is available to respond to general queries from employees and employers regarding their rights and responsibilities under the Employment Standards Act, 2000. The centre received 244,776 calls between April 1, 2014 and February 28, 2015, and provides information in multiple languages.

Labour Relations

Stable and Fair workplaces

The Ministry’s objective in the area of labour relations is to foster, support and maintain a balanced and stable labour relations environment throughout the Province. Activities in this program involve developing and implementing policies, strategies and services that promote fair, balanced and productive labour relations in Ontario workplaces. The key activity is the effective delivery of neutral dispute resolution and education services to the unionized sectors of the province. Stable labour relations are critical to the economy as well as to the government’s ability to deliver results in its key services of health care, education and other public services. The Premier has specifically expressed that the ministry is to uphold and respect the collective bargaining process with the goal of maintaining a respectful labour relations climate for both employers and unions.

To this end, the Labour Relations Solutions Division (LRSD) is focusing on maintaining stability in the broader public sector. LRSD will closely monitor labour relations in the Education and Energy sectors for the current rounds of bargaining, and assist the education sector in maintaining awareness of the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, 2014, which provided an alternative and rationalized bargaining model.

The introduction of this new legislation is unique and it is anticipated that considerable demands for LRSD support may be required for multi-level bargaining at central and local tables. The Government will officially sit as a legislated participant at the bargaining table.

LRSD will build on its work to develop a framework for centralized bargaining for the Developmental Services sector, and will continue to engage key partners in Children’s Aid Societies in discussions as part of this process. Dispute Resolution Services (DRS) will begin preliminary work with Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) construction bargaining agents prior to the commencement of the 2016 construction industry bargaining cycle, in addition to providing assistance to bargaining parties of the Energy sectors.

The ministry will continue to be involved in the review of legislation to reflect the changing workplace that would provide a central bargaining process and a possible amendment to the Labour Relations Act.

Dispute Resolution Services (DRS)

DRS provides a number of services to employers and unions including neutral, third party conciliation and mediation services for parties in collective bargaining; appointment of arbitrators in rights and interest arbitrations; provision of up-to-date, accurate and quality collective bargaining information for all industries and sectors to support modernized collective bargaining; and, use of a cost recovery model to provide grievance mediation services, workshops and training to employers and unions in “best practices” for collective bargaining and building effective relationships in the workplace.

DRS Mediators assist employers and unions in negotiating collective agreements under various labour related statutes, including the Labour Relations Act, 1995, Hospital Labour Disputes Arbitration Act, Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997, Ambulance Services Collective Bargaining Act, 2001, Crown Employee Collective Bargaining Act, 1993, Colleges Collective Bargaining Act, 2008, Education Act and Toronto Transit Commission Labour Disputes Resolution Act, 2011, and the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, 2014.

The various labour related statutes relate to 13,300 collective bargaining relationships in Ontario covering approximately 1.7 million workers. Of those, DRS usually provides conciliation and mediation assistance in 2,500-3,500 collective bargaining relationships each year. As of March 31, 2015 DRS managed more than 2,315 new requests for conciliation and mediation assistance. In recent years, DRS has reported settlements without a work disruption in more than 97% of these negotiations.

The program fosters productive workplace relationships throughout Ontario by making the credible and neutral source of labour relations information available to bargaining parties and providing assistance with collective bargaining negotiations that have reached an impasse. DRS provides employers, unions, members of the public and government with statistics, analysis and information on patterns and trends in collective bargaining. It also maintains copies onsite of over 13,300 collective agreements covering unionized employees in Ontario and all rights and interest arbitration awards, which are available to assist workplace parties in bargaining and administering their collective agreements.

The program continues to support other ministries, the private sector, municipalities and the education and health sectors, by providing mediation and arbitration services, and neutral collective bargaining information. The program is seeking to maintain a settlement rate of 95% or better of collective bargaining disputes resolved without a work stoppage and will continue to provide expert labour relations advice and neutral collective bargaining dispute resolution services to facilitate settlements without a work disruption. In 2014-15, 98.2% of collective bargaining disputes were resolved without a work stoppage.

Arbitration

DRS receives and processes approximately 2,000 requests for the appointment of interest and rights arbitrators each year. Appointments of arbitrators are made from a list of individuals who are qualified to act under Ministerial appointment. This roster is maintained in association with the Labour-Management Advisory Committee (LMAC) which advises the Minister on matters pertaining to arbitration, thus ensuring that experienced and acceptable persons are available for appointments.

Collective Bargaining Outlook

Collective bargaining negotiations in Ontario in 2015 include significant employers and a vast number of employees. A total of 1,937 collective agreements covering 364,887 employees will be expiring in 2015-16. In addition, as of March 18, 2015 over 2,040 sets of negotiations covering 215,857 employees were in progress and require Dispute Resolution Services assistance to finalize new collective agreements.

DRS will provide the required expertise to support bargaining in the hospitals sector, with 138 hospital nurse agreements due to expire in March 2016, covering approximately 59,360 employees. This includes the Ottawa Hospital (4,087 employees), Hamilton Health Sciences (2,959 employees), University Health Network (2,555 employees) and the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (2,344 employees). In the hospital support sector, 67 agreements covering 13,847 employees will be expiring with a majority of them in March of 2016. In the long-term care homes sector, 165 agreements covering 26,954 employees are also set to expire.

Other public sector employers that will be renegotiating expired collective agreements are in the municipal sector (114 agreements covering 38,314 municipal employees), including the City of Toronto with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) covering 27,400 inside, outside, recreation and part-time employees. Other sets of negotiations include the Red Cross Care Partners (consisting of personal support and homemaking service workers) and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) covering 3,700 employees; the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), representing 3,600 employees; Ontario Power Generation and the Society of Energy Professionals (6,742 employees); and Hydro One and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) (3,847 employees).

A key ongoing negotiation from the previous fiscal year is the Crown in the Right of Ontario (unified and correctional Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union (OPSEU) units with 29,043 and 5,422 employees respectively).

Education sector bargaining is anticipated to be particularly challenging as the parties work through, for the first time, the ne w legislation which makes government a legislated participant at the bargaining table. In addition, the legislation contemplates a bargaining framework which requires two levels of bargaining, with central and local bargaining. This legislation also creates the ability for work disruptions to occur at each of the central and local levels as part of the collective bargaining process. The Education sector consists of 472 school board agreements, covering almost 275,130 employees (teachers and support staff). Private sector agreements will account for 54% of all expiring agreements while almost 45% of expiring agreements are Broader Public Sector (BPS) agreements. In 2015-16 the Labour Relations Solutions Division will engage in initiatives that build upon the progress and foundation of the previous year of negotiating a central bargaining framework for Developmental Services and supporting the education sector in the contemplation of the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, 2014, and further facilitate provincial discussion tables for contemplation of centralized bargaining approaches for Children’s Aid Societies.

DRS will also provide advice and mediation assistance to ensure a stable labour relations climate is maintained in preparation for the 2015 Pan American Games in the Summer of 2015.

Promoting Best Practices

Part of the DRS mandate is the promotion of best practices in labour relations and dispute resolution. Best practices are promoted through day to day dispute resolution and also through regional workshops that focus on effective collective bargaining and fostering trust in the labour-management relationship. DRS is viewed as a leader in best practices in labour relations not only in Ontario but also by its provincial counterparts.

Various transformational projects in DRS in 2015-16 will help support the modernization of its of best practices. DRS will endeavour in a collaborative project with the Treasury Board Secretariat in building a centre of excellence for labour information. This joint initiative is expected to improve collective bargaining processes and outcomes in the Broader Public Sector, which could support the long-term outcome of BPS stability, and would also facilitate a voluntary legislative framework for central or coordinated bargaining. Additionally, the project would develop a Labour Relations Information Bureau which would create an integrated labour relations data collection and analysis system to support decision makers and improve negotiations at the bargaining table, improve collective bargaining processes and outcomes, as well as being a central hub of labour research and analytics.

The Labour Relations Information Bureau would further support improved evidence-based decision making and facilitate the development of rationalized bargaining models. This initiative would also provide an opportunity to explore synergies and efficiencies through the benefits of rationalization or centralization: procurement, IT clusters and administration.

Interactive Solutions

DRS’s Interactive Solutions program assists and supports parties’ efforts to improve their relationship with their counterparts through customized in-house programs and regional workshops and conferences. Interactive Solutions offers innovative and responsive training and workshops in a variety of areas to parties in unionized workplaces, including committee effectiveness training, joint steward-supervisor training, interest-based bargaining training and facilitation, joint workplace problem-solving, effective union-management grievance administration, and repairing, restoring and improving union-management relationships.

Most of the programs delivered through Interactive Solutions are customized workshops and programs. The programs build problem-solving skills and a real understanding of the importance of a constructive labour-management relationship, not only for collective bargaining purposes, but also for the day-to-day administration of collective agreements. The objective is to improve relationships between workplace parties, leading to a more stable labour relations environment with fewer or shorter workplace disputes.

DRS will continue to work to expand the breadth and scope of Interactive Solutions programs to increase the delivery of innovative and responsive programs and workshops to assist more participants in improving their labour relations environment.

Ministry Agencies

The ministry remains committed to supporting the government’s priorities of promoting jobs and economic growth in Ontario by contributing to a more competitive economy, poverty reduction and effective supports for the most vulnerable through its Occupational Health and Safety, Employment Rights and Responsibilities, and Labour Relations programs. The work of the ministry is supported by the following agencies:

Occupational Health and Safety

Office of the Worker Adviser: The Office of the Worker Adviser (OWA) provides advisory, representation and educational services to non-unionized injured workers and survivors, and represents them before the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal. The OWA also provides support to non-unionized workers in Section 50 (Occupational Health and Safety Act) reprisal cases being heard at the Ontario Labour Relations Board.

Office of the Employer Adviser: The Office of the Employer Adviser (OEA) provides advisory and educational services to all Ontario employers and representation services primarily to smaller employers, with fewer than 100 employees, with regard to workplace safety insurance matters before the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal. The OEA also provides support to employers with fewer than 50 employees in Section 50 (Occupational Health and Safety Act) reprisal cases being heard at the Ontario Labour Relations Board.

Employment Rights and Responsibilities

The Pay Equity Commission is comprised of the Pay Equity Office and the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal.

Pay Equity Office: The Pay Equity Office (PEO) administers and enforces Ontario’s Pay Equity Act, which is intended to eliminate systemic gender discrimination in the compensation of work primarily performed by women. To carry out this mandate, the PEO provides education and advice to employers, employees and bargaining agents in the public and private sectors in achieving and maintaining pay equity in their workplaces. The PEO also investigates complaints, monitors workplaces for compliance, attempts to effect settlements of pay equity issues between the parties and issues Orders for compliance where necessary.

Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal: The Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal (PEHT), a quasi-judicial tri-partite administrative tribunal, is responsible for adjudicating disputes arising under the Pay Equity Act.

Labour Relations

Ontario Labour Relations Board: The Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) is an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal which mediates and adjudicates a variety of employment and labour relations-related matters under various Ontario statutes, including appeals of decisions of employment standards officers and occupational health and safety inspectors.

Crown Employees Grievance Settlement Board: The Crown Employees Grievance Settlement Board (GSB) is an independent quasi-judicial tribunal that mediates and adjudicates labour relations rights disputes of Ontario Crown Employees. The GSB also provides financial and administrative services to the Public Service Grievance Board, an agency of the Ministry of Government Services.

Other Agencies

Two other agencies, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (WSIAT), report to the Minister of Labour but are not included in the ministry’s Expenditure Estimates, as they are not funded through the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

Advisory Agencies

Prevention Council: The Prevention Council provides advice to the Minister on the appointment of a Chief Prevention Officer and any other matter as specified by the Minister. The Prevention Council also provides advice to the Chief Prevention Officer on the prevention of workplace injuries and occupational diseases, for the purposes of the provincial occupational health and safety strategy and the annual report under section 22.3 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and on any significant proposed changes to the funding and delivery of services for the prevention of workplace injuries and occupational diseases.

Labour-Management Advisory Committee: The Labour-Management Advisory Committee advises on grievance arbitration matters and about individuals qualified to act as grievance arbitrators under the Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Acts Administered by the Ministry of Labour: 2015-2016

• Ambulance Services Collective Bargaining Act, 2001
• Crown Employees Collective Bargaining Act, 1993
• Employment Standards Act, 2000
• Employment Protection of Foreign Nationals Act (Live-in Caregivers and Others), 2009
• Hospital Labour Disputes Arbitration Act
• Labour Relations Act, 1995
• Ministry of Labour Act
• Occupational Health and Safety Act
• Pay Equity Act
• Public Sector Dispute Resolution Act, 1997
• Public Sector Labour Relations Transition Act, 1997
• Regulatory Modernization Act, 2007
• Rights of Labour Act
• SARS Assistance and Recovery Strategy Act, 2003, Part I (SARS Emergency Leave)
• Toronto Transit Commission Labour Disputes Resolution Act, 2011
• Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997

The Ministry of Labour also has responsibilities under the following Acts administered by other ministries:

• Colleges Collective Bargaining Act, 2008
  • Administered by the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. However, the Ministry of Labour has a role in the conciliation process, and the Ontario Labour Relations Board also has functions and responsibilities under this Act.
• Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997, Part IX (Firefighters: Employment and Labour Relations)
  • The remainder of the Act is administered by the Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services
• School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, 2014
  • Administered by the Ministry of Education. However, the Ministry of Labour has a role in the conciliation and mediation processes, and the Ontario Labour Relations Board also has functions and responsibilities under this Act.

Supplementary List - “Back To Work” Acts Administered by the Ministry of Labour:

• Fairness for Parents and Employees Act (Teachers’ Withdrawal of Services), 1997
• Toronto Public Transit Service Resumption Act, 2008
• York University Labour Disputes Resolution Act, 2009

Ministry Financial Information

Ministry Operating and Capital Allocation of 2015-16 Base Spending ($310.5M)

Chart values: Occupational Health and Safety, 71.3% ($221.3M); Employment Rights and Responsibilities, 13.1% ($40.5M); Labour Relations, 7.5% ($23.3M); Ministry Administration*, 7.0% ($21.7M); Pay Equity Commission, 1.2% ($3.7M)

* Includes Main Office 21.8%; Financial and Administrative Services 14.6%; Organizational Effectiveness Branch 6.3%; Communications Services 15.9%; Legal Services 37.4%; Audit Services; 1.2%; Information Systems 1.5%; Statutory Appropriations 0.3%; and Capital 1.0%

Ministry Planned Expenditures 2015-16 ($M)

• Operating: $309.5M
• Capital: $1.0M
• Total: $31.5M

Detailed Financial Information

The ministry’s key activities are: Occupational Health and Safety Enforcement and Prevention, Employment Rights and Responsibilities and Labour Relations.

In this context, the ministry provides advice and information to the government on labour and workplace issues; establishes and implements a provincial occupational health and safety strategy to ensure the alignment of health and safety activities across all system partners; designates, funds and maintains oversight over Health and Safety Associations; establishes standards for training programs, training providers, as well as training and other requirements for certification of joint health and safety committee members; develops policies; sets and enforces standards, legislation and regulations; carries out investigations; informs employers and workers about their workplace rights and responsibilities; ensures the provision of assistance in negotiating collective agreements and establishing arbitration boards; assists in building cooperative workplace relationships, and administers, interprets, and applies relevant labour legislation.

Combined Operating and Capital Summary by Vote

Highlights of 2014-15 Achievements

• Since 2011, the Ministry of Labour (MOL) successfully implemented 19 of the 46 Occupational Health and Safety Expert Advisory Panel Recommendations to date, including 9 of the 11 priority recommendations.
• The Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training regulation (O. Reg. 297/13) came into effect on July 1, 2014. This regulation requires employers to ensure that all of their workers and supervisors complete basic occupational health and safety awareness.
• The Working at Heights Training Program Standard, and Working at Heights Training Provider Standard were established. On December 9, 2014, the Ministry announced regulatory amendments which will mandate Chief Prevention Officer (CPO) approved training for workers who use certain methods of fall protection on construction projects. On January 5, 2015, the Ministry began accepting applications from prospective working at heights training providers. These new requirements came into force on April 1, 2015.
• The 2014 JHSC Certification Training Program Standard and Training Provider Standards were released on May 7, 2014.
• The first province-wide integrated occupational health and safety strategy, “Healthy and Safe Ontario Workplaces”, was launched by the Prevention Office in 2013. To date the Small Business, Falls from Heights Prevention and Ergonomic Action Plans have been developed. Other action plans to address the highest hazards, and protect vulnerable workers are currently under development.
• The Prevention Office published the 2013-14 Annual Report: Occupational Health and Safety in Ontario, which highlights the work done to-date, to implement its strategy. The 2014-15 Annual Report is expected later this year (2015).
• The CPO presented the final report of the Mining Health, Safety and Prevention Review to the Minister in April 2015. The final report contained 18 recommendations developed in consultation with employers and workers to improve the health and safety of underground miners.
• MOL launched the 2014-15 Research Opportunities Program. The call for proposals was issued in July 2014 and funding decisions were communicated in Spring 2015.
• The Occupational Health and Safety Prevention and Innovation Program (OHSPIP) was launched. The new program succeeds the former Prevention Grants Program and will provide funding of up to $250,000 to eligible prevention focused initiatives through three program streams: Prevention, Culture, and Innovation. The first call for proposals was issued in September 2014 and funding decisions were communicated in April 2015.
• MOL conducted 9 occupational health and safety blitzes to address concerns and raise awareness of workplace hazards.
• In 2014-15, Health and Safety Inspectors carried out more than 70,600 field visits and issued almost 131,200 orders.
• MOL Invested an additional $3 million to increase protection for vulnerable workers with the implementation of the Stronger Workplaces for a Stronger Economy Act (Bill 18). The ministry has launched its plan to increase enforcement activities and enhance claims processing capabilities to address an increase in the number and complexity of employment standards claims that will be generated by expanding coverage of the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (EPFNA) and extending the limits for filing claims under the Employment Standards Act (ESA).
• The minimum wage increased from $10.25 to $11 effective June 1^st, 2014 and Bill 18 indexes future minimum wage increases to changes in the Ontario Consumer Price Index.
• Conducted eight employment standards blitzes, including three provincial blitzes focused on vulnerable and temporary foreign workers, internships and temporary help agencies and five regional blitzes for the following sectors: auto dealerships, supermarkets, veterinary clinics, security services, seasonal work and tourism and professional offices.
• The Dedicated Enforcement Team conducted 2,477 proactive inspections including 413 compliance check inspections in 2014-15 with a continued focus on repeat violators and sectors with a history of non-compliance.
• A total of 246 tickets were issued to employers (includes blitzes and regular inspections).
• The ministry continued to foster, support and maintain balanced and productive labour relations climate in Ontario by achieving a settlement rate of 98.2% (as of March 18, 2015) in providing neutral dispute resolution services to negotiate collective agreements without a work stoppage. The ministry continues to surpass its settlement target rate of 95%.

Please see the Annual Report for additional details and achievements.

Ministry of Labour - Organization Chart

Through the ministry’s key areas of occupational health and safety, employment rights and responsibilities, labour relations and internal administration, the ministry’s mandate is to set, communicate and enforce workplace standards while encouraging greater workplace self-reliance. A range of specialized agencies, boards and commissions assist the ministry in its work.

The following positions report to the Minister:

• Deputy Minister
• Associate Deputy Minister and Chief Prevention Officer

The following positions report to the Deputy Minister:

• Assistant Deputy Minister of Internal Administrative Service Division and Chief Administrative Officer
• Assistant Deputy Minister, Operations Division
• Assistant Deputy Minister, Labour Relations Solutions Division
• Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy
• Associate Deputy Minister and Chief Prevention Officer
• Director, Communications and Marketing Branch
• Executive Assistant to the Deputy Minister
• Labour & Transportation I&IT Cluster (Ministry of Transportation)
• Legal Services Branch (Ministry of the Attorney General)
• Internal Audit Services (Treasury Board Secretariat)

The following positions report to the Chief Prevention Officer:

• Strategy & Integration Branch
• Training & Safety Programs Branch
• Stakeholder & Partner Relations Branch
• Health and Safety Program Administration and Certification Unit

The following positions report to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Operations:

• Employment Practices Branch
• Occupational Health & Safety Branch
• Central East Region
• Central West Region
• Northern Region
• Western Region
• Eastern Region
• Operations Integration Unit

The following positions report to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Labour Relations Solutions Division:

• Dispute Resolutions Services

The following positions report to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy Division:

• Employment, Labour and Corporate Policy Branch
• Health and Safety Policy and Program Development Branch

The following positions report to the Chief Administrative Officer:

• Organizational Effectiveness Branch
• Finance & Administration Branch
• Business Innovation Office

While they operate at arms-length from the Ministry for their quasi-judicial functions. The following agency heads report to the Minister for operational and policy purposes, and most report to the Deputy Minister for administrative purposes.

• Ontario Labour Relations Board
• Grievance Settlement Board
• Pay Equity Office
• Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal
• Workplace Safety & Insurance Board
  (Funded by the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board)
• Workplace Safety & Insurance Appeals Tribunal
  (Funded by the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board)
• Office of the Employer Adviser
  (Funded by the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board)
• Office of the Worker Adviser
  (Funded by the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board)

Agencies, Boards And Commissions (ABCs)

Summary of Expenditures: Agencies, Boards and Commissions

Note 1

All costs of the Grievance Settlement Board are fully recovered from government Ministries as expenditure recoveries and from crown employers and trade unions as revenue:

Note 2

The amounts shown are gross amounts and are fully recoverable from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.

The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal report to the Minister of Labour but are not included in the Ministry’s Expenditure Estimates because they are not funded through the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

Appendix: Annual Report 2014-15

In 2014-15, the Ministry of Labour supported the government’s priorities of Investing in People, Supporting a Dynamic and Innovative Business Climate and the Poverty Reduction Strategy to create safe, fair, healthy and stable workplaces that increase productivity, protect vulnerable workers and create a competitive economy that attracts jobs and investment to Ontario.

Key areas of progress in 2014-15:

• The ministry, together with occupational health and safety system partners, formed priority-specific working groups to guide the phased implementation of the Healthy and Safe Workplaces – A Strategy for Transforming Occupational Health and Safety. This work included finalizing a Small Business Action Plan, and moving forward to develop a High Hazard Action Plan, with an initial focus on preventing falls from heights.
• Along with system partners, the Safe At Work Ontario strategy continues to focus on firms with a poor health and safety compliance record in order to improve health and safety in our workplaces.
• The Employment Standards program introduced further changes to protect vulnerable workers and make workplaces fairer by making strategic investments that will significantly increase the number of proactive employment standards inspections conducted in the coming years.
• The ministry’s Labour Relations activities have supported stable and balanced labour relations to foster increased fairness and productivity in Ontario’s unionized workplaces through effective delivery of neutral dispute resolution and education services.

Prevention of Workplace Fatalities, Injuries and Illness

• Since 2011, MOL has successfully implemented 19 of the 46 Occupational Health and Safety Expert Advisory Panel Recommendations, including 9 of the 11 priority recommendations.
• In 2014, the Prevention Office released the results of the 2013-14 Research Opportunities Program (ROP) with $2.8 million committed to 13 studies. The projects focus on at least one system priority topic such as vulnerable workers, small businesses, high hazard activities or occupational disease.
• The Prevention Office also allocated $5.5 million to fund centres that conduct research in specific areas of expertise such as musculskeletal disorders, occupational cancer and other diseases. These include the Institute for Work and Health, Centre for Research Expertise in Occupational Disease and Centre of Research Expertise for the Prevention of Muculoskeletal Disorders.
• In 2014-15, MOL’s Prevention Grants program supported nine health, safety education and awareness initiatives focused on youth, families and by building partnerships with the prevention community and leveraging existing capacity and resources within the OHS system. The program has been succeeded by the new Occupational Health and Safety Prevention and Innovation Program (OHSPIP).
• The Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training Regulation (O. Reg. 297/13) was announced, which requires basic occupational health and safety awareness training for workers and supervisors. The regulation came into force on July 1, 2014. MOL has made available, at no cost, an accompanying accessible training program suite in multiple formats and languages. The regulation sets out the minimum content of both the worker and supervisor awareness training programs including instruction on the rights and/or duties of workers, supervisors and employers under the OHSA, the role of joint health and safety committees and health and safety representatives, and common workplace hazards and occupational illnesses. For further information on the Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training Regulation, visit www.labour.gov.on.ca.
• The Working at Heights Training Program Standard, and Working at Heights Training Provider Standard were established. On December 9, 2014, the Ministry announced regulatory amendments which will mandate Chief Prevention Officer (CPO) approved training for workers who use certain methods of fall protection on construction projects. On January 5, 2015, the Ministry began accepting applications from prospective working at heights training providers. These new requirements came into force on April 1, 2015.
• The Ministry undertook the administration, certification and related operational activities related to all mandatory training standards (including training standards for 1996 Joint Health and Safety Committee certification and working at heights). This includes approving programs, overseeing program delivery by training providers, and certifying successful learning participants.
• In the spring and summer of 2014, the MOL developed the proposed Mandatory Entry Level for Construction training program standard and provider standard.
• The Prevention Office continues to enhance and strengthen the oversight and accountability of the HSAs. A new performance measure tracking and reporting process was implemented in 2014-15, allowing for system-wide performance to be tracked effectively.

Key Statistical Data for HSAs

Please note that each HSA tracks their performance differently. A standardization of performance tracking is being undertaken by the Ministry of Labour and the HSAs.

• Several initiatives were funded that promoted OHS enhancements in the workplace. One example is the “Management of Aggressive and Responsive Behaviors in Healthcare” project being undertaken by an HSA. The Prevention Office continues to work with the HSAs to identify initiatives and opportunities to further enhance worker safety across Ontario.
• The Small Business and Vulnerable Worker Task Groups provided advice on outreach strategies to improve the workplace health and safety system’s understanding of the occupational health and safety needs of vulnerable workers and small businesses.
• MOL has worked towards increasing awareness about the health and safety rights of agricultural workers in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. During the growing season in western Ontario, inspectors will continue to use farming data received from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) to inform proactive inspections of farms that hire temporary foreign workers predominantly from Mexico, the Caribbean and Thailand. MOL representatives have attended community based migrant farm worker events to distribute health and safety information and resources to increase awareness and assist these workers in exercising their health and safety rights in the workplace.
• MOL is supporting the Ontario Government’s Stepping Up - A Strategic Framework to Help Ontario’s Youth Succeed initiative. Through this initiative, MOL is collaborating with 17 other ministries to improve outcomes for vulnerable youth, including occupational health and safety outcomes.
• In partnership with the Ministry of Education, collaborative work continues to support improved safety in elementary schools, expand current levels of safety education for secondary school students and to continue support for teachers in delivering safety education in their classrooms.
• MOL supports an annual video contest for students called “It’s Your Job…Prevention Starts Here”. This is a workplace safety video contest for secondary school students to both raise awareness and to allow youth to showcase their talent by producing videos to be used in our own young worker outreach campaigns.
• The Mining Health, Safety and Prevention Review was launched in January 2014 to conduct consultations with mining sector stakeholders to find better ways of bringing mine workers home safely at the end of every shift, while ensuring a productive and modern mining industry across Ontario. The review is looking at a wide range of areas of relevance to the health and safety of miners. A progress report was produced in September 2014 and a final report with recommendations was provided to the Minister of Labour in April 2015.
• In 2014-15, the ministry shifted to new, improved performance indicators that are consistent system-wide, and were developed through consultation between the MOL and system partners. Updating HSA performance measures aligns with Prevention Office’s drive for continuous improvement in performance measurement.

Making Workplaces Safer and Healthier

In 2014-15, the ministry achieved the following in support of the Safe At Work Ontario strategy

• MOL conducted 9 blitzes across numerous sectors to address concerns and raise awareness of occupational health and safety hazards which included

• In 2014-15, Health and Safety Inspectors carried out more than 70,600 field visits and issued almost 131,200 orders.
• MOL facilitated 16 Safe At Work Ontario Consultations across the province to obtain feedback and input from stakeholders on the OHS enforcement strategy for 2015-16.
• MOL facilitated consultations with stakeholders through Section 21 Advisory Committees to advise the Minister of Labour on specialized occupational health and safety matters including: mining, construction, electrical/utility sectors, fire services, emergency medical services, police services, film and television, and as well as a Technical Advisory Committee for farming.
• The WSIB reported a Schedule 1 Lost-Time Injury (LTI) rate of 0.95 for 2013 – down from 1.01 from 2012. Schedule 2 employers are individually responsible for the full cost of the accident claims filed by their workers. The WSIB reported a Schedule 2 LTI rate of 1.85 for 2013 – no change from 2012.

Beginning in 2015, the Ministry of Labour will track only the LTI rate for Schedule 1 employers and will work towards reducing the LTI rate for this group to 0.87 or lower.

Further information on Ministry of Labour initiatives to protect workers can be obtained from the Ministry’s website(ontario.ca/labour).

• A roundtable group brought together employer and labour representatives from a range of organizations in sectors where traumatic events are more likely: transit services, police services, nursing, fire services, and emergency medical services. A report is being produced that includes a broad range of ideas for addressing issues of work-related traumatic mental stress, and also proposes several follow-up actions.
• Worked collaboratively with Health and Safety Associations to ensure stakeholders were aware of the ministry’s blitzes in each sector and other occupational health and safety initiatives, and to develop tools (such as webinars) in support of the blitzes.
• The Construction Health and Safety Program made the following achievements in advancing occupational health and safety in Ontario:
  • Participated in public stakeholder discussion regarding the Construction Action Plan.
  • In collaboration with the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association, implemented a fall protection initiative for the roofing sector.
  • Developed and launched a new “Fall Hazards” video, posted on the MOL website.
  • Provided input into technical resources such as Canadian Standards Association standards on protective headwear, high visibility garments and ladders.
  • Provided input into the development and proposal of revisions for suspended access equipment and tower crane regulations.
  • Collaborated with industry stakeholder working group in the construction sector to develop proposed changes to construction regulation for carbon monoxide, suspended access equipment, and noise protection.
• The Industrial Health and Safety Program made the following achievements in advancing occupational health and safety in Ontario:
  • Developed Hazard Alerts on a number of topics including:
    • Powered Folding Partitions,
    • Compressed Oxygen Cylinders,
    • Sweep Augers in Silos on Farms
    • Horizontal Handling of Steel Plates
    • Collector Shoe Assemblies on Overhead Cranes
  • Developed public videos on Commercial Kitchens: Slips, Trips and Falls and other Hazards, and Greenhouse worker safety to demonstrate what inspectors are looking for with respect to compliance.
  • Continued to partner with the Ministry of Education and the HSAs to raise the awareness of health and safety in Ontario schools.
  • Provided input into technical resources such as Canadian Standards Association standards on protective headwear, protective footwear and over-the-shoe toe protectors.
  • Developed the Industrial Program’s Inspector Guidance on Ebola Virus Disease for First Responders (Emergency Medical Services, Fire and Police) and Extended Coverage Workplaces.
  • Provided technical advice and input into the Chief Medical Officer of Health Directives and training curricula specific to Emergency Medical Services and Ebola Virus Disease. This included technical advice and input pertaining to the Directive regarding Paramedic Services Land and Air Ambulance and First Responder Practices and Procedures, and the Directive regarding Waste Management for Designated Hospitals and All Paramedic Services.
• The Mining Health and Safety Program made the following achievements in advancing occupational health and safety in Ontario:
  • Provided input into technical resources such as Canadian Standards Association standards on G-4 General Purpose and for Mine Hoisting and Mine Haulage, CSA M421, Use of Electricity in Mines, CSA M424.2-90 (Non-Gassy Mines) and CSA M424.3 – M90 Braking Performance – Rubber-Tired, Self-Propelled Underground Mining Machines.
  • Developed the Mining sector plan and the trends analysis for the 9 subsectors which are posted on the Safe At Work website.
  • Completed production of additional videos to highlight ground control activities of an underground mining site, and to highlight inspection of a soft rock salt mine.
  • The Materials Testing Laboratory (MTL) which provides destructive testing of wire ropes and issues the Wire Rope Test Certificate for the mining operator prepared and tested approximately 800 samples according to the CSA G-4 standard.
• The Health Care Health and Safety Program/Occupational Medicine Unit (HC/OMU) made the following achievements in advancing occupational health and safety in Ontario:
  • Facilitated and participated in various committees under the direction of the Chief Physician including:
    • Provincial Infectious Diseases Advisory Committee
    • Ontario Medical Association/Ontario Hospital Association committee on communicable diseases surveillance protocols
    • Public Services Health and Safety Association Advisory Council
    • Ministry of Health and Long Term Care (MOHLTC) Emergency Management Committee
    • Health Care Committee (Section 21 Advisory Committee)
  • Partnered with MOHLTC to develop an Ebola Preparedness Plan.
  • Developed and delivered a Health Care Enforcement Initiative Addressing Serious Hazards in Health Care, which include:
    • IRS Evaluation including compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training Regulation and;
    • ‘Inspection of the workplace’ with a focus on the five most serious occupational hazards in health care:
      • Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
      • Exposures to hazardous biological, chemical and physical agents
      • Slips, trips and falls
      • Contact-with/struck by injuries
      • Workplace Violence
    • Liaised with MOHLTC, Public Health Ontario and other health organizations to plan strategies in response to emergent situations such as swine influenza, avian influenza and novel Coronavirus. The unit also worked in partnership with MOHLTC in the development of healthcare sector preparedness for the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS Co-V).
  • The Specialized Professional Services team supported occupational health and safety in Ontario by providing technical input to numerous committees and initiatives with the following achievements:
    • The team developed and implemented the Health Care Musculoskeletal Blitz
    • The Radiation Protection Service unit provided technical analyses and expertise in support of the Ontario Nuclear Reactor Surveillance Program.
    • The Radiation Protection Field Services completed a total of 628 x-ray registration and x-ray installation approvals. Additionally, 622 field visits to workplaces in possession of x-ray sources or other radiation hazards were conducted.
    • The Specialized Professional Services team supported development of proposed changes to implement the Global Harmonized System and WHMIS 2015.
    • MOL Emergency Management is actively engaged with other government partners in the development of consequence management plans to prepare for the Pan/ParaPan Am Games.

Protecting Vulnerable Workers and Making Workplaces Fairer

In 2014-15, the ministry enhanced its service delivery, expanded enforcement activities and supported the government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy with the following achievements:

• Invested an additional $3 million to increase protection for vulnerable workers with the implementation of the Stronger Workplaces for a Stronger Economy Act (Bill 18). The ministry will increase enforcement activities and enhance claims processing capabilities to address an increase in the number and complexity of employment standards claims that will be generated by expanding coverage of the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (EPFNA) and extending the limits for filing claims under the Employment Standards Act, 2000.
• The minimum wage increased from $10.25 to $11 effective June 1^st, 2014, and future increases will be indexed to changes in the Ontario Consumer Price Index.
• Eight employment standards blitzes were conducted, including three provincial blitzes focused on vulnerable and temporary foreign workers, internships and temporary help agencies, and five regional blitzes for the following sectors: auto dealerships, supermarkets, veterinary clinics, security services, seasonal work and tourism and professional offices.
• Developed a compliance strategy to improve delivery of proactive inspections, education, outreach and partnership activities to increase awareness of the Employment Standards Act.
• The Dedicated Enforcement Team conducted 2,477 proactive inspections, including 413 compliance check inspections in 2014-15 with a continued focus on repeat violators and sectors with a history of non-compliance.
• A total of 246 tickets were issued to employers (includes blitzes and regular inspections).
• The ministry continues to improve the time it takes to process employment standards claims. In 2014-15 it received 14,872 claims and completed 17,453.

Note: 2010-11 and 2011-12 completed claims investigations reflect the work of additional temporary resources and funding (ending March 31, 2012) for the Employment Standards Task Force to eliminate the claims backlog.

2012-13 completed claims investigations reflect reduced number of staff working on claims as modernization strategy focuses on a more proactive approach to enforcing the ESA and timing of recruitment and training of new ESOs to replace retiring staff.

Additionally, the ministry promoted compliance with the Employment Standards Act, 2000 by:

• Publishing a new agricultural workers tip sheet in English, French, Spanish and Thai, featuring employment standards and occupational health and safety information.
• Re-launching Employer Workbook tool as the “Employment Standards Workbook”, a neutrally written product that has been modified to speak to both employers and employees.
• Ensuring existing online educational resources are kept current in response to a number of legislative amendments including the June 2014 minimum wage increase, the passing of Bill 21 which resulted in a number of new leaves of absence being introduced, and the passing of Bill 18 which resulted in a number of new and revised provisions in the ESA coming into force at various dates throughout 2014 and 2015.
• Conducting a number of education, outreach and partnership initiatives throughout the year. Examples include:
  • Partnering with the Toronto District Library and the Ministry of Government Services to have employment standards posters displayed in common areas at 98 libraries across Toronto and 187 ServiceOntario Centres across Ontario.
  • Partnering with the Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure and Ministry of Research and Innovation to deliver an educational presentation at the annual programming conference for Small Business Enterprise Centres (SBEC) or “SBEC Day” to promote ES information to 57 SBEC managers from across Ontario.
  • Distributing over 1,000 employment standards posters and “What Businesses Need to Know” information sheets to small business employers through a student outreach initiative in Eastern Region.
  • Distributing an e-blast to college and university career centres at every major post-secondary school in Ontario to generate interest around an innovative digital toolkit that features links and ready-to-use information that the recipients could copy and paste into newsletters and websites.
  • Promoting educational resources to assist training service providers and consultants who work with immigrants to become familiar with MOL resources.
  • Partnering with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to promote ES information to EmploymentOntario service providers.
• Supporting provincial enforcement blitzes though education and outreach, including:
  • Coordinating stakeholder presentations in advance of each blitz.
  • Preparing educational resources to be distributed to employers during blitz inspections.
  • Developing and issuing reports on the results of each blitz and sharing with stakeholders.

For further information and access to Ministry of Labour Employment Standards tools and resources, visit ontario.ca/employmentstandards

Creating and maintaining a stable labour relations environment

The ministry continued to foster, support and maintain a balanced and productive labour relations climate in Ontario by:

• Achieving a settlement rate of 98.2% in 2014-15 (as of March 18, 2015) by providing neutral dispute resolution services to negotiate collective agreements without a work stoppage. The ministry continues to surpass its settlement target rate of 95%.

• Working with the broader public service and diverse sectors across the province during challenging economic times in regard to labour relations best practices.
• Supporting other ministries, the private sector, municipalities and the education and health sectors by providing mediation and arbitration services, and neutral collective bargaining information to support decision-making and collective bargaining.
• Assisting parties through its Interactive Solutions programs:
  • As part of the Interactive Solution program, DRS provided customized programs to 18 employers and 19 unions, including extensive facilitation, workplace relationship restoration and intensive relationship-building.
  • DRS lent its facilitation expertise and supported the ministry’s summit on Traumatic Mental Stress by providing facilitation assistance during focus sessions.
  • In view of its ongoing popularity, additional sessions of the regional conference, “Building and Maintaining the High-Trust Labour-Management Relationship” were delivered to sold-out numbers in Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Toronto and Kingston.
  • DRS has also provided its program development and delivery expertise in support of the ministry’s Council for Inclusion and Diversity by helping to develop programming for the council’s plan for ministry focus groups.
• Administration of the 2013-14 Arbitrator Development Program, resulted in the addition of six new arbitrators to the Minister’s approved list of grievance arbitrators to date, with the remaining five individuals expected to be added to the list in the next fiscal year.
• Taking a leadership role in the continued progression and refinement of the National Mediator Training and Development Workshop, the first level of mediator training, which is administered by the Canadian Association of Administrators of Labour Legislation (CAALL).
• Assisting parties in over 74 grievance mediations on a cost recovery basis.
• Tracking bargaining activity for expired collective agreements and new settlements to maintain an updated collection of collective agreements and related settlement data and trends. Approximately 2,835 collective agreements expired in 2014-15, mostly concentrated in the private sector, long-term care, education, universities, and the municipal sector.
• Managing over 1,900 new requests for arbitration assistance and over 2,300 new requests for mediation assistance while closing or completing over 2,250 arbitration and 2,600 conciliation and mediation files.
• Leading a centralized bargaining approach in the Developmental Services sector which resulted in recommendations for a framework that provides the criteria, clarity and effective use of transfer payments to the agencies.
• Exploring the potential expansion of rationalized bargaining to other sectors, including post-secondary education, and contributing to policy discussions focused on amendments to the Labour Relations Act to provide structure and process for voluntary centralized bargaining.

Ministry Interim Actual Expenditures 2014-15