UNIT REQUIREMENTS

All Units must have a functioning Local Health and Safety Committee.

A local Health and Safety Committee is a joint committee made up of worker and employer representatives working together to identify and resolve Health and Safety and health problems in their area. It is an organizational unit that can coordinate health and Health and Safety activities and monitor the status of the health and Health and Safety program.

The roles of the local Health and Safety Committees are to:

• Assist in creating a safe and healthy workplace,
• Recommend actions that will improve the effectiveness of the Health and Safety and health program
• Promote compliance with WCB and internal regulations.
• Their responsibility is to recommend changes to senior management.
• Senior management then, in turn, considers and make decisions on these recommendations.

Management will provide all necessary resources to ensure that the Local Health and Safety Committee is able to function effectively. These include:

• Training for Health and Safety committee members
• Administrative support
• Adequate time for committee members to carry out responsibilities
• Open two-way communication channels.

All meeting discussions and decisions are to be recorded, and the minutes distributed to senior management, the local SPA and the Unit of Health, Health and Safety and Environment.

Health and Safety Committee Terms of Reference

Local Health and Safety Committees

The Local Health and Safety Committees of the University have been mandated in the University Health and Health and Safety policy to:

• Carry out the Health and Safety programs within their areas and make recommendations to ensure that the Health and Safety objectives of the University can be achieved.”

These Committees have been directed to consider issues of personal Health and Safety and security and the fire Health and Safety of their work areas.

Committee Membership

All work areas of the University are to be covered by a local Health and Safety committee. Questions concerning appropriate areas of jurisdiction and organization of committees should be directed to the University Health, Health and Safety and Environment Office.

Each committee consists of not fewer than four members who work in the area covered and are familiar with local operations. Committee members are designated as representing the University or the Unit and Staff. As required by WCB Regulations, University representatives should not outnumber Unit and Staff representatives on the committee. University representatives are appointed by the appropriate Unit Head. Unit or Staff representatives shall be elected or appointed by their peers. Efforts should be made to ensure all major work groups or areas are represented on each committee. Unit members may be appointed as University representatives.

The members of the committee then elect two co-chairs and a secretary. One co-chair will represent the Unit and staff and will be elected by the Unit and staff members while the other co-chair will represent the University and will be elected by the university representatives. The secretary is elected by all committee members and can be either a university or Unit and staff member.

Roles of the Local Health and Safety Committee

In order to monitor Health and Safety Programs each Health and Safety Committee should:

• Participate in regular work site inspections and report any hazardous conditions found;
• Review written Health and Safety instructions and make recommendations for their improvement, particularly when new equipment of processes are introduced;
• Participate in Incident / Accident Investigations;
• Review, and make recommendations concerning all reported accidents or incidents which may have occurred in their unit;
• Ensure that accidents have been investigated and reported to the Health, Safety and Environment office;
• Staff representatives should accompany WCB officers on inspection tours as required by WCB Regulations.
• Review, and make recommendations concerning, inspection reports from WCB;
• Consider recommendations or suggestions from staff concerning health and Health and Safety issues and endorse them where warranted;
• Co-ordinate committee activities with the local Fire Health and Safety Director and cooperate with him or her to promote fire Health and Safety;
• Include in all its activities consideration of conditions or circumstances that may affect the personal security of students, Unit or staff.
• Conduct reviews of the health, safety and personal security programs in their units

Committee Meetings

Meetings are to be held periodically throughout the year and when urgent matters arise and should follow an agenda which contains the following topics:

• Roll Call or Attendance;
• Reading and acceptance of minutes of the last meeting
• Report of actions taken as a result of items arising from the minutes;
• Reading of correspondence;
• Report of committee members who have conducted inspections;
• Inspection reports from WCB officers;
• Reports of accident or near miss incident investigations, causes and means of prevention;
• Recommendations for improvement in Health and Safety programs such as training needs, awareness programs; hazard communication, or specific hazard abatement actions;
• New business
• Time and place of next meeting
• Adjournment.

Coommittee Minutes

The Secretary records the minutes of meetings and copies are distributed to:

• All committee members
• The Unit Head
• The University Health, Health and Safety and Environment Office.

Copies of Minutes are to be posted on Unit Bulletin Boards.

Minutes are posted on the internal webiste.

Committee Recommendations

Committee recommendations concerning the control of hazards or the improvement of prevention programs shall be directed to the administrative head of the unit who has operational responsibility for that work group. The administrative head’s response to these recommendations shall be elivered to the committee chair in time for the next committee meeting. Issues that have not been resolved to the satisfaction of the committee may be referred to the Director, Health, Health and Safety and Environment or to the University Health and Health and Safety Committee for their assistance.

Duties of Members and Officers

The duties of Health and Safety committee members are to:

• Report unsafe conditions and practices;
• Attend all Health and Safety committee meetings;
• Report all accidents or near accidents;
• Conduct inspections;
• Investigate all serious accidents;
• Contribute ideas and suggestions for improvement of health and Health and Safety;
• Work safely, and influence others to work safely;
• Immediately advise anyone who may be affected by any usafe act or condition;
• Attend Health and Safety courses or seminars that are made available to committee members;
• Promote and support personal security within a safe learning and working environment.

Duties of Co-Chairs

• Arrange for a time and place for meetings;
• Prepare and distribute agenda before the meetings;
• Review previous minutes and materials prior to each meeting;
• Report on the status of suggestions and recommendations;
• Guide committee discussions towards definite conclusions.

Duties of The Secretary

• Prepare minutes of the meeting;
• Distribute the minutes;
• Write reports and correspondence.
  Review of the Terms of Reference

The terms of reference of the local Health and Safety committee shall be periodically reviewed and amended by the University as may be required.

The Physics and Astronomy Health, Safety and Environment Committee members are:

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND REFERENCES

• “Health and Safety Program Roles and Responsibilities”
• “Due Diligence”
• “Hazard Assessments and Work Site Inspections”
• “Records, Documentation and Statistics”
• “Accident / Incident Investigations”
• “Program Review”
• WCB Regulation, parts 3.4 (g), 3.5 and 3.6
• UBC Policy #7 Health and Safety