Chapter 2 Section 203SD #35 - Langley Health & Safety ManualRevised: August 2013
Worksite Health and Safety Committee TOR
School District #35 (Langley)
WORKSITE HEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEE
TERMS OF REFERENCE
1. NAME OF COMMITTEE
The name of the committee is School District #35 (Langley) {school/worksite name} Worksite Health and Safety Committee.
2. CONSTITUENCY OF COMMITTEE
The constituency of the committee is all School District #35 (Langley) employees working at {school/worksite name}
3. PURPOSE OF COMMITTEE
In compliance with the Workers’ Compensation Act and WorkSafeBC Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, the Worksite Health and Safety Committee is a joint committee made up of employee and employer representatives consulting in a cooperative spirit to identify and resolve health and safety problems in support of a planned occupational health and safety program in the place of employment.
4. DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS OF THE COMMITTEE
A Worksite Health and Safety Committee has the following duties and functions in relation to its workplace:
a) to identify situations that may be unhealthy or unsafe for workers and advise on effective systems for responding to those situations;
b) to consider and expeditiously deal with complaints relating to the health and safety of workers;
c) to consult with workers and the employer on issues related to occupational health and safety;
d) to make recommendations to the employer and the workers for the improvement of the occupational health and safety of workers;
e) to make recommendations to the employer on educational programs promoting the health and safety of workers and compliance with the Workers’ Compensation Act and the WorkSafeBC Occupational Health and Safety Regulation and to monitor their effectiveness;
f) to advise the employer on programs and policies required under the regulations for the workplace and to monitor their effectiveness;
g) to advise the employer on proposed changes to the workplace or the work process that may affect the health and safety of workers;
h) to insure that accident investigations, violent incident investigations and regular inspections are carried out as required by the Act and the regulations;
i) to participate in inspections, investigations and inquiries as provided in the Act and the regulations;
j) to carry out any other duties and functions prescribed by regulation.
5. COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE
a) The committee shall consist of a minimum of 4 members, representing employees and the employer.
b) The employee representatives will be delegated from each of the employee groups and bargaining units by the members of the employee group or bargaining unit in accordance with Section 128 of the Workers Compensation Act.
c) The employer representative(s) will be appointed by the employer.
d) It is recommended that each member of the committee have an alternate member who can attend the meeting when the regular committee member is not available to attend. Alternate members will be responsible for keeping abreast of health and safety issues by reading the minutes
e) The suggested composition of the committee at each school is as follows:
- 1 representative from Langley Teacher’s Association
- 1 representative from CUPE 1260
- 1 representative from CUPE 1851
- 1 representative from School/Worksite Administration
f) If the workers at a site do not select any representatives, the School/Worksite Administration will seek out and assign worker representatives in accordance with Section 128(1)(d) of the Workers Compensation Act.
NOTE: The worker groups at each site are to determine amongst themselves if a different worker representative composition than the suggested list above is best to serve the site.
Terms of Office
Each member’s term of office will be for ______.
6. CO-CHAIRS OF THE COMMITTEE
a) The committee shall have two (2) co-chairs, one selected by the worker representatives and the other selected by the employer representative(s).
If a joint committee is unable to reach agreement on a matter relating to the health and safety of the workers at the workplace, the co-chairs are to report this to the District Health & Safety Officer. If there is still no resolution, the District Health & Safety Officer will report this to the District Health and Safety Committee and may also report this to WorkSafeBC to assist in resolving the issue.
b) The two co-chairs shall decide between them on how they will share the duties of the co-chairs that are listed below:
chair all committee meetings and preserve order
prepare the agenda
arrange the meeting place and notify members of the meeting
ensure minutes of the meetings are kept and distributed to members of the committee
ensure a copy of the approved minutes are posted at the worksite (last 3 meeting)
ensure a copy of the approved minutes are forwarded to the District Health and Safety
Jointly correspond to the District on behalf of the committee when required.
7. RECORDS OF THE COMMITTEE
a) The committee will keep accurate record of all matters that come before it.
b) Minutes of the committee meetings, once approved, will be posted at the worksite for a minimum of three months.
8. MEETNG OF THE COMMITTEE
a) The committee will meet on the ______of each month at _____ p.m. in the ______, during the school year, September through June, unless notified otherwise
b) Special meeting, if required, will be held at the call of the co-chairs.
c) A quorum for a meeting shall exist if at least one worker representative and one employer representative are in attendance, and the employer representatives do not outnumber the worker representatives present.
d) The committee will add procedures it considers necessary for the meetings.
e) Members of the committee are expected to attend all meetings. If a member is unable to attend for any reason, they are responsible for advising their alternate to attend in their place.
f) If a committee member misses more then 2 consecutive meetings without having an alternate attend, they shall be replaced on the committee. The selection of the replacement member shall be in accordance with Part 5 of these Terms of Reference.
9. AGENDAS AND MINUTES OF MEETINGS
a) An agenda will be prepared by the co-chairs and distributed to members prior to the meeting.
b) Minutes will be prepared as soon as possible after the meeting and will be forwarded to the employer, who will distribute copies as follows:
one copy to each committee member and alternate
one copy to be sent to the District Health and Safety Officer
one copy to be posted on the Health and Safety bulletin board at the site.
10. AMENDMENTS
These terms of reference may be amended by majority vote of the committee members.
Ref. KL112108 H&S Manual C2 S203Page 1 of 3