When will it end? Many of our clients are becoming increasingly frustrated with the imposition of onerous statutory obligations. And now the Ontario Divisional Court has added another to the pile.
Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Actrequires that a critical injury, which includes a fatality or a risk of fatality, a loss of consciousness, substantial blood loss, the fracture of a leg or arm, amputation of a leg, arm or foot, burns to a major portion of the body, or loss of sight in an eye, must be reported immediately to the Ministry of Labour. The site of the injury must not be altered or interfered with until a Ministry inspector has completed an inspection. Employers are (or should be!) aware of this requirement as part of their obligation to protect workers.
However, in 2007, a guest drowned in a swimming pool at Blue Mountain Resort. A Ministry of Labour inspector took the position that the incident constituted a critical injury which should have been reported to the Ministry, despite the fact that the victim was a guest of the resort, not an employee. When it reviewed the Ministry’s decision, the Ontario Labour Relations Board agreed. On judicial review to the Divisional Court, the Divisional Court agreed with the OLRB, finding that because the injury occurred in a workplace, the Ministry of Labour should have been advised, as hazards in the workplace are presumed to put workers at risk.