Changes to OHSA an indication of stronger concerns for workers.

As if farming isn’t challenging enough as a career -managing risk and volatility in the marketplace, environmental regulations, financial concerns and seasonal weather issues. Then there are topics that aren’t always front-of-mind, like road safety -which takes on a greater focus at planting and harvest -and on-farm worker safety.

There’s no question about farm safety’s importance to the success of an operation -no matter the size. The agri-food industry has lost too many people to unfortunate incidents where a person’s attention was diverted momentarily. Or they’re engaged in a practice that’s acknowledged as hazardous but has been performed dozens of times without incident, only to have it suddenly turn dangerous or even lethal.

Top 10
According to a web item from the Occupational Health Group (OHG), the 10 Common Occupational Health and Safety violations in Ontario are failing to:

1. Provide proper personal protective equipment (PPE)
2. Properly train workers
3. Maintain equipment and machinery
4. Properly control hazardous substances
5. Provide a safe and healthy work environment
6. Properly manage and store materials
7. Provide adequate first aid and emergency procedures
8. Report incidents and accidents
9. Provide adequate ventilation and lighting
10. Address harassment and violence in the workplace

Who’s covered
Under the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, all employees in the province are covered by the Employment Standards Act (2000) (ESA). Most employers are well aware of this, however there is a degree of specificity that applies to agricultural employees working in Ontario, who are also protected by the ESA and fall under four categories:

• Farm employees – who work in primary production
• Harvesters – who work at harvesting crops for marketing or storage
• Near farmers – who work in growing flowers or trees and shrubs, growing, transporting and laying sod, breeding or boarding horses, and keeping fur-bearing mammals for pelts
• Landscape gardeners – who work on the aesthetic modification or maintenance of land

Unfortunately, in spite of workers’ rights to know about workplace health and safety hazards, the right to training and participating in identifying and resolving health and safety concerns and to refuse work that is dangerous, accidents continue to occur.

“That raises the stakes where health and safety violations in the workplace are concerned.”

In April 2022, the Government of Ontario passed Bill 88, “the Working for Workers Act (2022)”, amending the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) to increase penalties for senior officials of a company who fail to take reasonable care to ensure compliance with the OHSA. With the amendment to Bill 88, maximum fines rose from $100,000 to $1.5 million for senior officials of a company, or imprisonment for a term of no more than 12 months, or both (as per OHSA Sec 66(2.1).

That raises the stakes where health and safety violations in the workplace are concerned, as two farming operations in Ontario learned.

Case #1
In late May 2020 as COVID-19 was becoming entrenched, a horticulture operation south of Simcoe suffered a COVID outbreak, with 85 per cent of the more than 200 employees testing positive. Three were hospitalized and one died as a result of the infection, despite the fact the individual was never isolated from others.

An investigation by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development investigated and the Ontario Court of Justice (OJC) stated the employer did not take the “reasonable precaution of isolating COVID-19 symptomatic workers” to protect other employees. This is a violation of the golden rule in the Act, Sec 25(2)(h). In addition, the OJC found the employer “did not consistently implement and enforce screening for COVID-19 symptoms” in the workplace. Furthermore, the court determined the company permitted workers to regulate themselves when it came to using facemasks.

In August 2022, the Ontario Court of Justice issued a $125,000 fine, with a qualifier that “it is highly likely that the penalty would have been even higher, but for the uncertainty regarding COVID-19 in or around mid-2020”.

Case #2
A company that operates a farm north of Toronto was also fined $125,000, after a worker was fatally injured while servicing a piece of farm equipment. The company, which specializes as a commercial farm which grows, washes, grades and packages vegetables, failed to ensure the safety of a worker during preparations for harvest in August 2022. The machinery in question was part of a line of hoppers, conveyors, cleaners and packaging equipment and the line required lubrication, which is done with the machinery running.

A trainee, who was assigned other duties, began lubricating the equipment by themselves and suffered fatal injuries. An investigation followed and determined the line’s uptake conveyor had no guard to prevent access to the “pinch point”. By not providing a proper guard, the employer failed to ensure the measures laid out in Section 25 of Ontario Regulation 851 and was contrary to Section 25 of the OHSA. The fine was announced in October 2024.

The company has since taken steps to install additional guards, third-party assessments of the guards and a full review of the training provided to workers and supervisors.

Much has been made of a growing presence and awareness of how farms and agricultural corporations are functioning, particularly from outside of the industry. Evidence already points to an increasingly vocal consumer contingent regarding how crops are grown and how their production may affect the soil or the environment. Like it or not, agriculture is being scrutinized, and the need for diligence and recognizing the importance of following health and safety regulations will continue to grow.

In a farm community where liabilities and regulatory requirements are becoming more complex, it’s good to know there are those with the needed level of expertise ready to help you adapt to those changes and succeed. The need for Health & Safety training for your farm has never been greater; if you’re planning to add a Health & Safety program for you and your employees, contact the professionals at Elite Agri Solutions for their assistance in safeguarding your farm, call 519 – 953 – 4479.