As you may already know, Alberta Health Services has released a revised Terms of Reference (TOR) bulletin for all Joint Worksite Health and Safety Committees (JWHSC). The collaboration between AUPE, our healthcare members and your employer was urgently needed considering recent rollbacks in legislation (Bill 47) designed to negate the employer’s obligations to engage with their Health and Safety Committees.
After a careful review, the mandate of our Health and Safety Committees remains mostly intact thanks to strong language in effect through the Collective Agreements at AHS worksites. As a result, AHS and the Unions have worked to revise and clarify the duties of the JWHSC.
The key requirements of the committee remain unchanged, specifically:
The right for worker committee members to participate in investigations of serious incidents in the workplace.
Worker committee member involvement in addressing Dangerous Work Refusals.
The entitlement of committee members to request additional training to enhance their role.
Committee members are responsible for disseminating this information to others and ensuring that the new TOR is understood, as it is now in effect. As such, AUPE is recommending that all committees review and discuss the TOR at their next committee meeting.
Monthly meetings are still to be held.
We recommend keeping paper copies of the new TOR available for those who have not yet had a chance to review the changes. If the revised Terms of Reference have an impact on your duties or procedures, please notify the AUPE OH&S Committee for guidance.
If you have any questions regarding the new TOR, please reach out to the AUPE Member Resource Centre at 1-800-232-7284.
On behalf of AUPE’s Occupational Health and Safety Department, we would like to thank the AHS members involved in this process: Cindy Bill, Judy Fader, Wendy Gummesen, Wally Howe, Brenda Lussier. Your ongoing support is key to maintaining a safe, supportive environment and upholding OH&S policies.