The Construction Safety Association of Manitoba (CSAM) has taken steps to streamline safety and sort out some of the confusion that exists around workplace safety and health requirements in the Prairie province.
An app has been developed that translates lengthy and complicated health and safety rules and regulations into simple, easy-to-understand language.
“We receive numerous calls from our members about safety and health legislation, requiring clarification or explanation around what the legislation means,” explains CSAM executive director Sean Scott. “We understood this technology was being used in other jurisdictions, and we felt an app would be a practical and accessible solution to some of the confusion around workplace safety and health requirements.”
CSAM has compressed more than 350 pages of the Workplace Safety and Health Act (WSHA) and regulation and broken the information down into 20 categories that are commonly requested for clarification.
Each topic contains a plain language summary, the original text from the legislation, and a list of practical resources.
“We chose the 20 topics in this app based on the most frequently asked questions our advisors receive, as well as the topics that would apply best to all industries,” says Scott.
The association worked for two years to create and tweak the app, which is free to download from Google Play for Android users and the App Store for iPhone users.
The WSHA and regulation are huge documents that can be hard to navigate, says Scott, and the app was created as a resource to enable contractors, supervisors, and workers to easily access and understand their legislated responsibilities and legal requirements – and most importantly, how to comply with the law.
“Instead of having to flip through pages of legislation in a paper copy of the Workplace Safety and Health Act and Regulation, contractors can save time by quickly searching the 20 topics we’ve included in the CSAM app.
“Because we’ve written these topics into plain language, the legislation is easier to understand, meaning contractors will also spend less time trying to figure out legal jargon and can move toward taking action and implementing safety requirements.”
The app is designed to make safety simple and accessible for employers, supervisors, safety representatives and workers to take care of themselves and their co-workers by understanding and meeting legislated safety responsibilities.
“Our app takes this complicated legislation and puts it into plain language, so it’s easy to reference and search, plus it includes practical resources that make it easier for the user to comply with legislated responsibilities,” says Scott.
CSAM recognizes that, when it comes to legislation, documents require specific language and style, but understands the format isn’t practical for most of its members, he adds.
“Safety legislation is incredibly important to the wellbeing of employees in all workplaces, so this is part of our effort to create practical solutions for a safer workplace.”
Categories on the app are arranged alphabetically and can be searched by topic. Links to the full legislation are available on the main page of the app.
Once the app has been dowloaded, all of the content is available offline, so it’s always accessible in areas where there is little to no cell reception.
Within the app menu, there are links to external resources, such as the CSAM website and online audit tool. Those features require Internet access.
“Our app provides one go-to guide for many scenarios, regardless of the trades on-site,” notes Scott. “The app is best used as a tool for employers, supervisors, safety representatives or workers for quick reference of safety requirements to help ensure a safe jobsite.”
For example, he says, a prime contractor is responsible for all companies on one jobsite, but that can include a wide variety of trades with different hazards and safety requirements.
The app will be updated as legislation changes, says Scott, and, furthermore, CSAM plans to continue evolving the app as it develops new resources and technology for safety.
The app is the second digital tool adopted by CSAM to spur better safety performance. The association teamed up with the Institue for Work and Health (IWH) last year to develop the INDICATOR, a digital dashboard that enables companies to chart their safety programs and compare how they’re doing against competitors.
Purpose of the dashboard is to spur CSAM’s more than 7,000 members companies to improve their performance. The dashboard can be found under the ‘resources’ tab on the CSAM website at www.constructionsafety.ca.
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