In accordance with WorkSafeBC Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, if an employee has reasonable cause to believe that to carry out any work process would create an undue hazard to the health and safety of any person, they have the right to refuse to take such action.
Under such circumstances the following procedure is to be followed:
1) An employee must immediately report the circumstances of the unsafe condition to their supervisor and complete Part A of the Work Refusal Report Form
2) A supervisor upon receiving the report must immediately notify the Occupational Health and Safety department and investigate the matter and:
- ensure that any unsafe condition is remedied without delay, or
if in their opinion the circumstances are not valid, the supervisor must inform the employee who made this report explaining why this is the case
Supervisor completes Part B of the Work Refusal Report Form following the investigation.
3) If this does not resolve the matter and the employee continues to refuse to carry out the work process, the supervisor must investigate the matter, with the assistance of the Occupational Health and Safety Department (OHS), in the presence of the employee who made the report and in the presence of:
- an employee representative of the worksite Joint Health and Safety committee (JOHSC), or
- an employee who is selected by the union representing the employee, or
- if an employee is not represented by a union, any other reasonably available employee selected by the employee.
Supervisor completes Part B of the Work Refusal Report Form following the investigation.
4) If this does not resolve the matter and the employee continues to refuse to carry out the work process, the Supervisor, OHS Department and the employee will jointly notify WorkSafe BC at 1 888 621-SAFE (7233).
5) A WorkSafeBC officer will attend the work site and investigate the work refusal. The WorkSafeBC officer may issue an inspection report or an order if they find that an undue hazard does exist, or they will advise the parties that no undue hazard is present, and the employee can safely perform the work.
Please contact the OHS Department, if you require any additional information or have any questions regarding the Refusal of Unsafe Work Protocol.