Commissioner's directive 254: Occupational Health and Safety, Duty to Accommodate and Return to Work Programs

Purpose

To promote the establishment and the maintenance of safe, healthy and harassment and discrimination-free work conditions for employees in order to prevent or reduce the incidence of accidents, occurrences of harassment and violence and physical or psychological occupational injuries and illnesses.

To provide employees of the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) who incur an injury or illness the support and assistance to remain in and/or return to fully productive employment, as soon as medically feasible.

Application

The Occupational Health and Safety Program applies to all CSC employees at the local, regional and national levels of the organization. The Return to work Program and the Duty to Accommodate Program apply to all CSC employees.

Responsibilities

1. The CSC Executive Committee will ensure full compliance with the Canadian Human Rights Act, the Employment Equity Act, the Government Employees Compensation Act and the requirements of Treasury Board policies as well as Part II of the Canada Labour Code, the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations and the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations.

2. The Assistant Commissioner, Human Resource Management, will ensure that guidelines and resources are in place to manage the following programs:
   1. the Occupational Health and Safety Program
   2. the Return to Work Program
   3. the Duty to Accommodate Program.
3. Senior managers in all CSC facilities will ensure that the following documents are posted at all CSC facilities in accordance with the requirements established in Part II of the Canada Labour Code:
   1. this Commissioner's Directive
   2. Part II of the Canada Labour Code
   3. any printed notices or other material as prescribed by Employment and Social Development Canada (Labour Program) or the Treasury Board Secretariat.
4. CSC managers will ensure
   1. the protection of every person employed by CSC as it relates to their health and safety at work
   2. due diligence is applied in taking every reasonable precaution in the circumstances to avoid injury or loss by following the relevant policies
   3. any barriers that prevent an employee from being included in or accessing the workplace are identified and eliminated as per the protected rights under the Canadian Human Rights Act, through CSC’s Duty to Accommodate Program.

Procedures

5. CSC managers will:
   1. work cooperatively with officials from Employment and Social Development Canada (Labour Program) and Health Canada in order to meet compliance requirements and/or other health and safety objectives
   2. provide assistance to employees who incur an injury or illness (work or non-work related) through the Return to Work Program in order to facilitate their return to work, consistent with medical restrictions and limitations, as soon as medically feasible
   3. ensure the timely presentation of return to work cases to the appropriate carrier (e.g., provincial Workers’ Compensation Board, disability insurance carrier)
   4. ensure the timely identification, review and assessment of accommodation requests, communicate the decision and implement the accommodation measures where appropriate
   5. ensure consistent monitoring of services with a safe (for the worker and co-workers) and timely return to work and/or accommodation as the primary objective
   6. educate employees, their representatives and supervisors concerning the Occupational and Health Safety Program, Return to Work Program and Duty to Accommodate Program
   7. maintain the productive capacity of affected CSC employees by supporting their physical, social and psychological rehabilitation following an injury or onset of an illness.

Enquiries

35. Strategic Policy Division
    National Headquarters
    Email: Gen-NHQPolicy-Politi@CSC-SCC.gc.ca

     

    Commissioner,
    Ann Kelly