The transition to a green economy represents a new opportunity to entrench high standards of health and safety in the workplace, a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) says.

The report, entitled “Promoting Safety and Health in a Green Economy,” says that while promoting a greener, low-carbon economy provides many benefits to the environment and society, it does not necessarily make jobs healthier and safer. Occupational risks must be identified and managed from the start.

New research from the Institute for Work and Health (IWH) shows temporary workers hired through third-party temp agencies may be at higher risk of injury on the job than their permanent, full-time counterparts.

The requirement imposed on employers by Bill 168 to disclose information about potentially violent workers remains the most difficult aspect of Ontario’s 2010 amendment to its Occupational Health and Safety Act, an HR consultant says.

B.C. employers and workers have a new tool to help them reduce the risk of domestic violence in the workplace. WorkSafeBC, the province’s workers’ compensation board, today introduced an online kit that provides information on issues such as recognizing the signs of domestic violence, providing support to an abused worker and what to do to prevent such violence from affecting workers’ safety.

A recent study by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business aimed at evaluating the impact of the country’s workers’ compensation boards on small businesses ranked the Ontario and Quebec boards at the bottom.

If a recent OHS-related case in Nova Scotia is any indication, health and safety officers may now be required in the eyes of the law to go beyond their traditional duties and responsibilities to help mitigate risks. One health and safety coordinator had to learn this the hard way: through a conviction.

A year and a half after Ontario introduced stricter regulations on harassment and violence in the workplace, most employers still don’t know how to put them into practice, experts say.

The occupational safety concept of prevention through design (PTD) has taken a huge step towards general implementation with the publication in the United States of a comprehensive national standard.

The first standard ever developed in Canada for the design and construction of new hospitals and other medical facilities could mark a major advance in the working conditions of doctors, nurses and support staff.

A recent OHS-related ruling in Alberta has renewed calls for more alternative or creative sentencing for safety violations, and at least one Ontario lawyer is urging his province to follow in Alberta’s footsteps.