Ontario HR Compliance · CLC Part II (occupational health & safety)
The Internal Responsibility System and the General Duty (CLC Part II)
CLC Part II replaces the Ontario OHSA for federal employers and rests on the internal responsibility system — shared employer and employee responsibility for health and safety, anchored by the employer's general duty to protect every employee and a fixed hierarchy for preventing hazards.
CLC Part II governs occupational health and safety for federally regulated employers, in place of the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act. It rests on the internal responsibility system (IRS): health and safety is a shared responsibility between employer and employees, worked out inside the workplace rather than imposed solely from outside.
The general duty, at section 124, is the anchor: every employer must ensure that the health and safety at work of every person it employs is protected. Preventive measures follow a fixed hierarchy under section 122.2 — eliminate the hazard first, reduce it if it can’t be eliminated, and provide personal protective equipment only once elimination and reduction are exhausted.
Employees hold three basic rights under the IRS: the right to know about workplace hazards, through information and training; the right to participate, through committees and representatives; and the right to refuse dangerous work. On the employer’s side, the general duty translates into concrete obligations: provide information, instruction, training, and supervision; investigate, record, and report accidents, occupational diseases, and hazardous occurrences; and make sure committee members and representatives get the training the Code prescribes.
This is general information, not legal advice; confirm current requirements at the Labour Program’s Part II summary before relying on them.
Source: Government of Canada — Labour Program, occupational health and safety summary ·
Also: Canada Labour Code, Part II (Justice Laws)
Last reviewed .
Confidence: Verified
Related notes
- Federal vs. Ontario Jurisdiction: The Employment-Law "Instead Of" Rule — A federally regulated employer follows the Canada Labour Code and related federal statutes in place of Ontario employment law, not on top of it — the federal regime replaces the ESA, OHSA, Human Rights Code, AODA and Pay Equity Act rather than adding to them.
- The Hazard Prevention Program (CLC Part II) — Federal employers must develop, implement, and monitor a hazard prevention program sized to their workplace and its hazards, built in consultation with the health and safety committee or representative — and a workplace-specific version where the general program doesn't cover a hazard unique to that location.
- Health and Safety Committees and Representatives: Headcount Thresholds (CLC Part II) — Federal employers structure health and safety participation by headcount — a representative under 20 employees, a workplace committee at 20 or more, and an additional policy committee once the employer reaches 300 employees across Canada.
- Work Refusals and the Internal Complaint Resolution Process (CLC Part II) — Federal employees can refuse dangerous work, and Part II routes health and safety problems through an internal resolution process before any outside escalation, with reprisal against an employee for exercising these rights prohibited.
- Hazardous Occurrence Investigation and Reporting (CLC Part II) — Federal employers investigate every accident, occupational disease, and hazardous occurrence, report the serious ones by phone within 24 hours and in writing within 14 days, and file an annual report to the Labour Program even in a year with zero incidents.
- Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations — In force since January 1, 2021, this regime binds every federally regulated employer regardless of size and requires a joint workplace assessment, a written prevention policy, training, a resolution process with a one-year completion deadline, emergency procedures, and an annual report to the Minister of Labour.