Lone Worker Safety Policy Guide For Northwest Territories

Our Guide To Lone Worker Safety Policy And Legislation In Northwest Territories

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How Northwest Territories Defines A Lone Worker

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Employing A Lone Worker In Northwest Territories

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How The Safe Lone Worker App Can Protect Northwest Territories Lone Workers And Employers

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Northwest Territories Lone Worker Policies

What is a code practice?

WSCC codes of practice provide practical guidance to achieve the safety requirements of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut Safety Acts and related Regulations.

As per subsection 18(3) of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut Safety Acts, “For the purpose of providing practical guidance with respect to the requirements of any provision of this Act or the regulations, the Chief Safety Officer may approve and issue such codes of practice as he or she considers are suitable for that purpose.”

WSCC codes of practice apply to workplaces in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The Chief Safety Officer approves codes of practice for use by all occupational health and safety (OHS) stakeholders. Codes of practice come into effect in each territory on the day they are published in the Northwest Territories Gazette and Nunavut Gazette.

Codes of practice do not have the same legal force as the Safety Acts and related Regulations. A person or employer cannot face prosecution for failing to comply with a code of practice. However, in legal proceedings under the Safety Acts and related Regulations, failure to observe a code of practice may be a consideration when determining whether a worker or employer complies with the Safety Acts and related Regulations.

Employers and workers should follow WSCC codes of practice unless there is an alternative course of action that achieves the same or better occupational health and safety outcomes.

Definitions

Competent: having knowledge, training, and skills to organize and perform tasks, or duties.

Contractor: a person or company contracted to supply products or services.

Due Diligence: taking all precautions, reasonable under the circumstances, to protect the health and safety of workers. Due diligence applies to actions before an event occurs, not after.

Employer: means every partnership, group of persons, corporation, owner, agent, principal contractor, subcontractor, manager, or other authorized person having charge of an establishment in which one or more workers perform work.

Hazard:any situation, thing, or condition that may expose a person to risk of injury or occupational disease.

Hazard Control:all steps necessary to protect workers from exposure to a substance or system, and the procedures required to monitor worker exposure and their health to hazards such as chemicals, materials, substances, or other hazards such as noise and vibration. A written workplace hazard control program should outline which methods are in use to control the exposure and the means for monitoring the effectiveness of the controls.

Hazard Identification:formal identification and documentation of hazards.

High-risk Work:work that exposes workers to hazards that, should an incident occur, may result in a fatality or permanent disability.

Imminent Danger: any place, matter, or thing which could reasonably be a source of likely danger to the health or safety of persons employed on or in connection with the work or worksite.

Incident: an unplanned, undesired event that causes or could cause injury, damage, or loss (also called accident or near miss).

Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee: a Committee made up of equal employer and worker representation that promotes workplace safety through inspecting the workplace; identifying hazards; helping the employer develop safety policies and procedures; and making recommendations to the employer to address safety concerns.

Project Supervisor: the worker responsible for monitoring contractor safety performance; reports to the employer.

Risk: the chance or probability of a person getting harmed, or experiencing an adverse health effect if exposed to a hazard.

Working Alone: to work at a work site as the only worker, in circumstances where assistance is not readily available in the event of injury, ill health, or emergency.

Introduction

Code of practice on working alone

The Working Alone code of practice provides guidance to employers and workers to ensure the health and safety of employees who work alone. The Code provides a definition and description of working alone, outlines the legislation, and discusses hazard assessment and the development of safe work procedures. Working alone can result in hazardous situations. Employers need to develop solutions to reduce or eliminate the risks to the employee who works alone.

Working Alone refers to a range of work situations, from being the only worker in a workplace, or in a work area where the worker does not have direct contact with other employees or a supervisor, to working at a remote or isolated worksite where assistance is not readily available. Working Alone situations include:

• Working alone at hazardous work; for example in forestry, oil and gas, or a mechanicworking alone under a car.
• Travelling alone; for example, truck drivers, field workers, research scientists, surveyors, safety officers, wildlife officers, hunters, or trappers.
• Working in isolation; for example, custodians and security guards or maintenance workers.
• Meeting clients away from the office; for example, home care workers, nurses, government enforcement officers, social service workers, or real estate agents.
• Working alone and handling cash; for example, convenience store clerks, retail service and food outlet workers, or taxi drivers.

This Code of Practice does not cover the specific circumstances of employees who work alone or at an isolated work site or describe monitoring methods for particular situations. Employers are responsible for considering and addressing all the hazards in jobs where workers work alone or in isolation by reducing or eliminating the risks. They must implement safe work procedures and train their employees to use them. Safe work procedures can cover a wide variety of scenarios. Some situations deal with the hazards that dangerous machinery and toxic materials present. Other situations present risks to the worker’s psychological well-being due to threat of violence, or the impact of the isolation when working in a remote location. The employer must consider all these factors when developing safe work and emergency response procedures.

Acts, Regulation and standards

Employers, supervisors, and workers need to be aware of the legal responsibility associated with ensuring safety as an integral part of workplace activity, and the consequences if they do not meet safety obligations in addition to injuries or damages to property or materials. Under territorial legislation, employers, supervisors, and workers may be subject to financial and imprisonment penalties.

Key Working Alone Concepts

Hazard Assesment

Identify the risks arising from the conditions and circumstances of the work site in consultation with the Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee, including input from the worker, in order to reduce the probability of an incident. Refer to the Hazard Assessment code of practice.

Eliminate or reduce the risk

Take all reasonable measures to eliminate the risks identified, which include the development of safe work procedures, establishment of an effective communication system, training of workers, and ensuring access to emergency services in case of injury or incident.

Key steps to follow:

1. Do a Hazard Assessment.

2. Identify the Risks in Working Alone.

3. Establish Safe Work Procedures.

4. Keep Work Alone Procedures Current.

Hazards of working alone

In the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, challenging weather conditions, remote and isolated work sites, mobile phone and internet access limitations, hazardous work, shortage of workers, and a transient workforce contribute to risk for employees working alone.

Certain circumstances make working alone hazardous. Identifying the hazards inherent to these circumstances depends on accurately defining what working alone is, and evaluating the situation and the degree of risk. Whether a situation poses a high or low risk will depend on the type of work activity, the work environment, and the potential consequences of an emergency, accident, or injury. The wide range of factors makes it important to assess hazards specific to each work alone situation; determine the level of risk; and consider the employee’s knowledge, skills, and training.

Working Alone or Working in Isolation describes situations when a worker performs a job function during the course of employment, where they:

• Are the only worker for the employer at a workplace at any time;

• Work at a worksite remote from other workers;

• Work in circumstances where assistance is not readily available;

• Do not have direct supervision by the employer or a supervisor;

• Are not in the presence of another employee directly associated with the same employer;

• Work in an area where the worker does not have visual contact with a co-worker; or

• Travel away from a base office to perform job tasks; for example, client meetings.

When working alone is not being alone

It is important to recognize working alone hazards can exist in situations beyond being alone at a work site or working in isolation. Unique hazards arise for workers who travel for work or meet clients away from their office. A social worker, health care worker, or security worker – though not alone in person – may still be considered to be working alone. Even when surrounded by other people, a work situation may meet the conditions described in the section above.

Travel Hazards

Employees who travel alone may be exposed to the risks of injury from a vehicle accident, extreme weather conditions, or getting stranded in remote areas. Doing fieldwork alone carries a degree of risk in relation to the location and access to communication and emergency response. A businessperson in transit presents a low risk scenario, while an investigator alone in an isolated location may face a higher degree of risk in view of potential hazards.

Hazard Assessment

The employer must identify workplace hazards to ensure the health and safety of the employee who works alone. Determining the level of risk involved with the type of activity, task, and environment helps form safe work procedures and develop controls to eliminate or reduce the risks.

Worker Involvement

A worker representative must participate in assessing the hazards and risks and developing the necessary controls. Employers must inform affected workers of the hazards identified and the methods they will use to control or eliminate the hazards in working alone. The worker should also receive a copy of the hazard assessment.

Factors to consider in hazard Identification

• Locations where employees work alone.

• Type of work activity (for example, welding).

• Hazards inherent to the work activity (for example, equipment failure, toxic gasses).

• Hazards inherent to the work environment (for example, heat, cold, hostility, drug abuse).

• Previous incidents, injuries, reports, and near misses.

• Control measures and precautions currently in use.

• Details on how to seek or provide emergency assistance.

• Evacuation and emergency procedures.

• Equipment needed for employees working alone.

• Information and training provided to the worker.

• Gaps or patterns to address.

Level of Risk

Risk is the chance or probability of the worker getting harmed or experiencing an adverse health effect if exposed to a hazard. Evaluating the risks as low, medium, or high ensures the appropriate measures of controlling the hazards.

Factors to consider for Level of Risk:

• Hazard of work activity and job function.

• Hazards of the environment and conditions.

• Length of time the worker works alone.

• Access to emergency services.

• Access to effective communication.

Important variances in risk Assessment

Consider whether the worker has permission to work alone while performing a specific work activity. With certain jobs, such as confined spaces, the risk is too high to permit a worker to work alone. The work environment also impacts the level of risk. Security work in a mall may be high risk in certain locations. A nurse working alone in an isolated location may be at higher risk than the job function predicates. Working with dangerous equipment in a remote location, which emergency services cannot immediately access, carries significant risk, as does working alone with dangerous equipment in a workshop at night without a check-in arrangement.

Thermal condition in the northwest territories and nunavut

Conditions like heat and cold present various levels of risk to someone working alone. A work activity that may not pose a risk in ordinary circumstances can become a high-risk activity in extreme weather conditions, such as what occur in the NWT and Nunavut.

Truck driving in other localities or in the summer season may be low risk, but in tuckers in the NWT often drive alone, with long distances between settlements, minimum communications contact by radio, and in hazardous snow and ice conditions that vary by the hour. Ice roads are especially dangerous in spring and fall, and incidents involving trucks breaking through ice occur every year.

Furthermore, extreme cold affects machinery. Equipment is prone to break down at extreme temperatures. In the NWT and Nunavut where life may depend on repairs and maintenance despite weather conditions, this impacts risk assessment. For instance, safety harnesses are tested to comply with standards ranging down to only -35°C.

High risk examples

Working with:

• High energy materials (radioactive, high temperature).

• Toxic gases, liquids, or solids.

• Cryogenic (low temperature) materials/processes.

• High pressure systems.

• High voltage electrical systems

• Logging industries.

• Moving equipment or machinery.

• Laboratory functions.

Working in:

• Extreme weather conditions with winter road construction and maintenance.

• Remote locations with limited emergency access (for example, surveying, logging, hunting, fishing).

• Workplaces isolated from public view and at risk of violent attack (for example, guards).

• Situations requiring the handling or transferring of flammable liquids, for instance in the oil and gas industries.

• Occupations that require travel away from an office base such as wildlife officers, or to meet clients, such as care workers and law enforcement officers.

• Environments where the job functions may not be hazardous, but employees are at risk of criminal victimization because they handle cash or goods. Examples include, but are not limited to, late night convenience stores, taxi transport, and gas station services.

Low Risk Examples

Working in:

• Maintenance, other than on active processing equipment.

• Security, except in hazardous locations.

• Janitorial or custodial positions, except when location is hazardous.

• Transportation; that is trucking under ideal conditions.

• Offices or while in transit on a business trip.

The Hazard Assessment Code of Practice provides more detail on risk factors and assessment. The purpose of the assessment is to develop appropriate controls to prevent harm or injury.

1. Elimination (remove from the work site)

2. Substitution (use a less harmful chemical)

3. Engineering (isolate equipment /set guards)

4. Administration (provide training/ maintenance/ safe work procedures)

5. Personal Protective Equipment (provide gloves/ goggles/ safety harness)

After conducting an assessment that identifies all the hazards, develop procedures to address how to control each hazard to eliminate or manage risk. When working alone or in isolation, developing a safe work procedure specific to the job is an essential control and safety measure, particularly where multiple factors come into play, such as a vast range of occupations, job functions, and environmental conditions.