Most employers in Ontario, including IBAO member offices will fall under the requirements of the new Bill 168, the Occupational Health and Safety Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the Workplace) 2009. This comes into force on June 15, 2010, and there are several requirements of Ontario employers in order to ensure compliance with this new law.
- Develop, implement, communicate and maintain policies on workplace violence and harassment.
- Develop reporting and investigation procedures for incidents of alleged workplace violence and harassment.
- Assess and advise employees on the risk of workplace violence.
- Train employees and managers on their rights and obligations regarding workplace violence and harassment.
IBAO is dedicated to providing our members with resources to improve business operations, and more importantly to ensure compliance in the workplace legislation. As such, we have reached out to our HR partners solutions provider, ENGAGE Human Resources Solutions Inc. for their support. ENGAGE will provide IBAO Member offices with tools and resources to help ensure your office is protected in accordance with Bill 168. Here is what you can expect from IBAO and ENGAGE over the coming weeks:
APRIL
New Policy Templates – on workplace violence and harassment, including reporting and investigation procedures for all cases of workplace violence and harassment. These new templates can be added to your existing policy package that IBAO provided to members via CD last year.
A How-to Guide – and tool for conducting a workplace violence risk assessment.
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A Communication Guide – for informing employees and managers of their rights and obligations under Bill 168.
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A Practical Training Program on preventing workplace violence and harassment will be made available to all Member Offices later this year.
Workplace Investigations – ENGAGE Human Resources Solutions Inc. is ready and willing to conduct 3rd party workplace investigations services to all IBAO Member Offices on a fee for service basis. More details will be provided in the coming weeks on this service offering.
You can also view Bill168 in its entirety.
For more information, please contact the ENGAGE Advantage Helpdesk at
905-306-8111 x 240 or 1-877-EHRS-411 x 240.