An OHS Inspector may visit your workplace based on targeted initiatives such as for fall protection, machine guarding, WHMIS 2015 compliance, electrical hazards or any activity that may be high risk.
An OHS officer can write compliance orders in which the employer will be required to act or the OHS officer may issue a stop work order in situations of immanent danger.
Inspections by OHS can result in fines, penalties, and/or surcharges.
OHS inspectors are becoming more proactive in conducting workplace inspections. The purpose behind this is to ensure that all workers in the workplace go home in the same condition they went to work.
Let us help you prepare for a visit from OHS by participating in an On-Farm Inspection Initiative.
We have partnered with the OHS Division of the Department of Labour and Advanced Education on an educational inspection initiative for the farm community. In 2016, OHS identified farming as a priority industry and FSNS worked closely with OHS Division to develop a phased approach to compliance inspections.
We host an educational inspection on-farm and invite the farmers in the area to attend. It is a great forum for an initial introduction to OHS inspections. This session allows the group to share their questions, recommendations and concerns. These sessions are very generic in nature as they are intended as an introduction to the inspection process and OHS compliance.
The group does a walkabout of the farm, led by the farm owner and OHS Inspector, with periodic stops throughout to discuss areas of the farm. Attendees are encouraged to ask questions and share their troubleshooting ideas with others.
These workshops can be open to the farm community and advertised via FSNS or can be invite only at the discretion of the host farm.
Phase 1 Process
- A host farm is identified.
- Inspection date is scheduled and advertised via FSNS.
- FSNS does a pre-visit with the farm to determine the walkabout route of the workshop.
- On-Farm Inspection Workshop hosted (with coffee and snacks!).
- Inspection report generated for host farm.
- FSNS will support the farm in reviewing and implementing report recommendations on request.
Visit https://farmsafetyns.ca/on-farm-inspection-initiative/ to request your on-farm inspection or call 902-893-2293.
