A–B. Health and Safety; Technological Development, Impacts, and Careers · Technology Fundamentals, Safety and ConnectionsHealth and Safety Law: Rights and Responsibilities at School and Work
A4.1About 70 minutes
Learning goals- I can describe Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Internal Responsibility System.
- I can explain the duties of employers, supervisors and workers, and the three rights of workers.
- I can apply these rules to my technology classroom and to a first job.
Words to know
Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA)
Ontario's main law about safety in workplaces.
regulation
A detailed legal rule made under an Act, for example for construction sites.
Internal Responsibility System
The idea that everyone in a workplace shares responsibility for health and safety.
Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC)
A group of worker and employer members that finds hazards and recommends fixes; required in workplaces with 20 or more workers.
competent supervisor
A supervisor who knows the work, its hazards and the law.
right to refuse
A worker's legal right to refuse work they believe is likely to endanger them or others.
reprisal
Punishing a worker for using their health and safety rights; it is illegal.
inspector
A Ministry of Labour official who checks workplaces and can order changes.
Hook: your first job
Imagine it is next summer. You get a job at a garden centre. On day one, your supervisor hands you a gas-powered hedge trimmer and says, "Just figure it out." No training, no safety glasses, no instructions.
Is that allowed? What can you do? In Ontario, the answers are in a law called the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). This lesson explains the rules that protect you at school and at work, and your own responsibilities.
The law: the Occupational Health and Safety Act
The OHSA is Ontario's main workplace safety law. It sets out the duties (legal responsibilities) of employers, supervisors and workers, and the rights of workers. Detailed regulations under the Act set specific rules for industries such as construction, mining, health care and industrial workplaces (factories, garages, restaurant kitchens).
The OHSA is built on the Internal Responsibility System: everyone in a workplace shares responsibility for health and safety, and each person has a part to play. The government's role is to set the rules and send inspectors from the Ministry of Labour (its full name is now the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development) to check and enforce them.
| Party | Main duties under the OHSA (simplified) |
|---|
| Employer | Take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances to protect workers; provide information, instruction and supervision; provide and maintain equipment, materials and protective devices; appoint competent supervisors; make sure workers and supervisors complete basic health and safety awareness training; post the OHSA and the Ministry's health and safety poster; have policies on workplace violence and harassment. |
| Supervisor | Make sure workers follow the law and use the protective equipment required; tell workers about any hazards they know of; take every precaution reasonable to protect workers. |
| Worker | Follow the law and the workplace's safety rules; use or wear the equipment and protective devices the employer requires; report hazards, missing equipment and broken guards to the supervisor; never remove or disable a safety device; no pranks, contests, feats of strength, unnecessary running or rough play. |
Three rights every worker has
- The right to know about hazards in the workplace, through training, labels and information.
- The right to participate in health and safety, for example by reporting concerns or being a member of a Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) or a health and safety representative. Workplaces that regularly have 20 or more workers need a JHSC; workplaces with 6 to 19 workers need a health and safety representative.
- The right to refuse unsafe work if you believe it is likely to endanger you or another worker. (A few jobs where some danger is a normal part of the work, such as police officers and firefighters, have a limited version of this right.)
An employer cannot punish a worker for using these rights. That is called reprisal, and it is against the law.
Young workers and minimum ages
Ontario sets minimum ages for some workplaces: at least 14 for offices, stores, arenas and restaurant serving areas; 15 for factories, including restaurant kitchens, repair shops, automotive service garages and warehouses; 16 for construction, logging and surface mines (not the working face); and 18 for underground mines, window cleaning and offshore oil or gas rigs. Employers cannot employ young people under 16 during school hours.
New and young workers are more likely to be hurt in their first months on a job, often because they have not been trained or do not feel comfortable asking questions. Knowing your rights helps you speak up.
Health and safety in your technology classroom
Your technology classroom works like a workplace. Your teacher acts like the supervisor, the school board is responsible for the facility and equipment, and you have duties like a worker. Typical shop rules include:
- Pass a safety test and get your teacher's permission before using any machine.
- Wear the required personal protective equipment (PPE), such as safety glasses.
- Tie back long hair; remove loose jewellery; no loose sleeves or dangling cords near machines.
- Report any damaged tool, missing guard, spill or injury right away, even a small cut.
- No horseplay, ever.
Ontario's law also protects many unpaid learners, such as co-op students on placement.
Worked exampleLet's apply the law: the hedge trimmer
Back to the hook. Mira, 16, is handed a gas-powered hedge trimmer with no training, no PPE and no instructions. What duties were not met, what are Mira's rights, and what should she do?
- Employer and supervisor duties not met: they must provide information, instruction and supervision, and the required protective equipment. Mira received none.
- Mira's right to know: she has the right to be told about the hazards (sharp moving blades, noise, hot muffler, fuel) and how to work safely.
- Mira's worker duties: use the PPE required and report the hazard. She should not try the tool without training.
- What she should do: politely tell the supervisor that she has not been trained and needs eye and hearing protection and instructions before using it. If she believes the work is likely to endanger her, she can refuse and follow the steps of the right to refuse.
- Protection: the employer cannot punish her for raising the concern.
Mira should ask for training and PPE before starting, and she has the legal right to refuse unsafe work. Speaking up is part of a worker's duty, not "being difficult."
Just for funWhy did the hard hat get promoted at the construction site?
It always used its head.
Look for the poster
Every Ontario workplace covered by the OHSA must post the Ministry's health and safety poster, called Health & Safety at Work: Prevention Starts Here. Next time you are in a store or restaurant, look for it near the staff area or entrance.
Hands-on activitySafety interview and family rules
You need: paper and a pencil, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Interview an adult who works (or has worked) at any job. Ask: What safety training did you get? What PPE do you use? Is there a health and safety committee or representative? Have you ever reported a hazard? What happened? Record their answers.
- Compare their answers with the employer, supervisor and worker duties in this lesson. Which duties did you hear about?
- Write a one-page "Home workshop rules" sheet for your family (for the garage, basement or kitchen) with at least six rules, using the OHSA ideas: who is in charge, required PPE, reporting, no horseplay, training before using tools.
- Ask the adult to sign it if they agree, and post it where tools are kept.
Your turn
1What does OHSA stand for?
The Occupational Health and Safety Act, Ontario's main workplace safety law.
2Name the three rights of workers.
The right to know, the right to participate and the right to refuse unsafe work.
3What is the Internal Responsibility System?
The idea that everyone in a workplace (employer, supervisor and workers) shares responsibility for health and safety.
4Give two duties of a worker.
Any two: follow the safety rules; use required PPE and equipment; report hazards and broken equipment; do not remove safety devices; no horseplay or pranks.
5A workplace has 25 workers. What health and safety group must it have?
A Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) (required at 20 or more workers).
6What is the minimum age to work in a restaurant kitchen in Ontario?
15 (restaurant kitchens are treated as factories).
More practice: warm-up
1Who acts like the supervisor in your technology classroom?
2True or false: a worker can be fired for refusing unsafe work.
False. Punishing a worker for using their rights (reprisal) is against the law.
Inspectors from the Ministry of Labour.
Personal protective equipment.
5Name one shop rule about hair or jewellery.
Tie back long hair and remove loose jewellery so they cannot get caught in machines.
More practice: on your own
1A worker notices the guard is missing from a saw. Which duties apply to the worker and to the supervisor?
The worker must not use the saw and must report the missing guard to the supervisor. The supervisor must make sure the hazard is dealt with (repair or remove the saw from service) and tell workers about it. The employer must provide and maintain the guard.
2Explain why a supervisor must be competent.
A competent supervisor knows the work, the hazards and the law, so they can train and protect workers. A supervisor who does not know the hazards cannot warn others about them.
3Ari, 15, is offered a summer job framing houses. Is that legal in Ontario? Explain.
No. The minimum age for construction is 16. Ari could legally work in a store (14+) or a restaurant kitchen or warehouse (15+).
4During a work refusal, where must the worker be, and why?
In a safe place near their work area, so they are out of danger but available for the investigation.
5Why are new and young workers at higher risk of injury? Give two reasons.
Any two: less training and experience; may not know the hazards; may not feel comfortable asking questions or speaking up; may want to impress the boss by working fast.
Challenge
1A friend says, "Safety is the boss's job, not mine." Use the Internal Responsibility System to explain why that is wrong.
Under the Internal Responsibility System, everyone shares responsibility. The employer and supervisor have duties, but workers also have legal duties: follow the rules, wear PPE, report hazards and never disable safety devices. Workers are often the first to see a hazard, so the system fails if they stay silent.
2Design a short script (4 to 6 lines) Mira could use to speak to her supervisor about the hedge trimmer, politely but firmly.
Sample: "Hi, before I start with the hedge trimmer, could you show me how to use it safely? I haven't been trained on it yet. I'll also need safety glasses and hearing protection. I want to do the job right. If it's not possible today, could I work on something else until I'm trained?" Look for: polite tone, names the missing training and PPE, offers a solution.
3Compare the right to refuse with simply walking off the job. Why is the formal process better for everyone?
The formal process means the hazard is reported, investigated and fixed, so other workers are protected too. It also gives the worker legal protection from reprisal. Walking off may leave the hazard in place for the next person and does not give the employer a chance to fix it.
Quiz
1. What is Ontario's main workplace safety law?
2. Which is not one of the three worker rights?
3. Who has a duty to report a broken guard to the supervisor?
4. How many regular workers make a Joint Health and Safety Committee required?
5. What is the minimum age for working on a construction project in Ontario (most roles)?
This lesson is about rights and duties, which many teens will use within a year or two at a first job. The most useful thing you can do is model speaking up: share a time you asked for training or reported a hazard.
Common mix-ups: thinking safety is only the boss's job (everyone has duties), and thinking a worker can just walk away (the right to refuse has a process). The minimum ages and committee numbers come from Ontario's official guidance; they are worth remembering but the big ideas matter more. The interview activity works with any job, including office work, retail or caregiving.