Every federally regulated employer must develop, implement, and monitor a hazard prevention program under section 125(1)(z.03) of the Canada Labour Code. The program has to be appropriate to the size of the workplace and the nature of its hazards, and it has to include employee education — a boilerplate document sized for a much larger or different operation won’t satisfy the duty.

The program is built in consultation with the policy committee where one exists, or otherwise the workplace committee or the health and safety representative. Where the general, organization-wide program doesn’t address a hazard unique to a particular location, the employer has to develop a workplace-specific program for that hazard, again in consultation with that workplace’s committee or representative.

This isn’t a paperwork exercise with no teeth: failing to develop and implement a hazard prevention program has been the basis of a real federal prosecution and fine. See CLC Part II Prosecutions and Maximum Penalties.

This is general information, not legal advice; confirm current requirements at the Labour Program’s workplace safety pages before relying on them.

Related notes

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.

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.

CLC Part II Prosecutions and Maximum Penalties — Serious Part II health-and-safety contraventions can be prosecuted, with maximum fines up to $1,000,000 and/or up to two years' imprisonment for the most serious offences; real, named prosecutions include Rogers Communications ($260,000), Logistec Arrimage/Stevedoring ($300,000), and Ken Johnson Trucking ($125,000).

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.