WorkSafeBC releases additional resources to handle impairment in the workplace

WorkSafeBC has released guidelines and resources to raise awareness about impairment at work and keep workplaces safe now that recreational cannabis is legal in Canada.

Under current occupational health and safety regulations, employers must:

  • not allow a worker who is impaired for any reason — alcohol, drugs (including cannabis) or any other substance — to perform work activities that could endanger the worker or anyone else; and
  • not allow a worker to remain at any workplace while the worker’s ability to work safely is impaired by alcohol, drugs or any other substance.

Employers also need to make workers aware of their responsibilities, including:

  • making sure that their ability to work safely is not impaired by alcohol, drugs or other causes, which means showing up fit to work and remaining so throughout the work day;
  • not working if their impairment may endanger them, or anyone else; and
  • notifying their supervisor if their ability to work safely is impaired for any reason.

WorkSafeBC recommends that employers take this opportunity to develop or update their policies and procedures on impairment in the workplace, and have released a guide on how to do so.

The guide to managing workplace impairment and developing an impairment policy can be found on WorkSafeBC’s website.

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