Ford government prioritizing workplace safety after protests

Published November 25, 2019 at 10:38 pm

The provincial government has announced it is launching a new program that will provide financial incentives to businesses that provide safe work environments to their employees. 

The provincial government has announced it is launching a new program that will provide financial incentives to businesses that provide safe work environments to their employees. 

The new program, entitled Supporting Ontario’s Safe Employers, will provide employers that implement health and safety programs in their workplaces with up to $148 million in the form of Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) rebates over three years. 

“We know that good health and safety practices save lives,” Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development, said in a news release.

“But they also save money. This program is a reflection of that fact. Our government wants to do everything it can to make workers safer and help businesses save money,” he continued.

“This is a big step for Ontario’s health and safety community as we continue to move forward in protecting workers,” Ron Kelusky, Ontario’s Chief Prevention Officer, said in the same news release.

“We’re adopting innovative approaches to become a modern regulator. Industry has long asked for rewards for employers who successfully promote health and safety in their workplace,” he continued. 

The program, which will be open to all businesses in Ontario, regardless of size or sector, is part of the government’s focus on improving the safety of workplaces across the province and comes not long after protesters barricaded themselves in Doug Ford’s office to protest his lack of action towards workplace safety. 

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