Changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code are simplifying workplace violence and harassment prevention requirements for employers, says Cristina Wendel, an Edmonton-based employment lawyer at Dentons Canada LLP.

The amendments, which take effect March 31, include a requirement for employers to develop and implement a consolidated violence and harassment prevention plan. The plan must include measures to eliminate, if not reasonably practicable, control, the hazards of violence and harassment, as well as procedures to inform workers of the nature and extent of violence and harassment hazards, procedures to report and investigate complaints of such incidents and provisions to protect the confidentiality of those involved wherever possible.

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Previously, employers had to develop and implement separate violence and harassment prevention plans — each of which contained a separate policy and list of related procedures. Wendel notes prior to the latest amendments, the Code contained specific requirements for what had to be included in each component, resulting in duplication and a greater administrative burden on employers.

“The changes to the content are quite minimal, but before [the amendments] there were four different pieces that employers had to have to be compliant. . . . Having four separate documents also raised concerns because a lot of employers, particularly ones that have operations across the country, like to have an all-in-one [violence and harassment policy] and it made it difficult for them to know if they were compliant [with the Alberta legislation].”

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Previously, employers had to review the violence prevention plan and harassment prevention plan every three years or sooner if an incident of violence or harassment occurred, or if the joint health and safety committee or health and safety committee recommended a review.

The updated legislation requires employers to review the consolidated policy violence and harassment prevention plan every three years or when an incident indicates a review is required, not necessarily after every incident as previously required, or where there’s a change to the work or work site that could affect the potential for violence or harassment to occur.

Ahead of the deadline, Wendel says it’s important for employers to review the new requirements and make sure they’re compliant or to make the required changes to their current workplace policy.

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For employers that aren’t in compliance by March 1, there are potential legal consequences under Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Act, says Tari Hiebert, an Edmonton-based partner in Dentons’ litigation and alternative dispute resolution group.

“If an employer is subject to a complaint, and occupational health and safety, OHS officers can investigate. . . . They can demand to see your documents and your policies and they can compel people to participate in interviews and provide information.

“If they aren’t satisfied that an employer is in compliance, they can issue a stop-work order and that can be very damaging for an employer’s operations. They can also issue administrative penalties — and those penalties can be up to $10,000 per incident of non-compliance.”

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