EB-P3 - Workplace Safety and Health Work Refusal Procedure

Definition of "Dangerous Work": A danger to safety and health is generally defined as a an imminent risk of serious physical or health injury:

• that is created by a hazard 

• That is unusual to the normal working conditions or tasks for the job, or where the worker's physical condition increases the risk.

• Where the employer has failed to implement reasonable measures to reduce, eliminate or control the risk or hazard

Violence in the workplace

Prairie Spirit School Division recognizes that employees working with students with identified behavioural issues may be at risk of violence.

The Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Act defines violence as: 

(a) the attempted or actual exercise of physical force against a person; and

(b) any threatening statement or behaviour that gives a person reasonable cause to believe that physical force will be used against the person” [WSH. Sec 11, M.R. 217/2006].

Steps to Eliminate or Reduce the Risk of Violence 

Workplace Safety and Health Regulations: Part 11, Violence in the Workplace requires that employers who provide educational services assess risk and develop prevention procedures that describe the actions and measures employers will take to eliminate, or control the level of risk of violence to employees, where it is not reasonably practical to eliminate the risk [WSH, Sec. 11.4 (b)]. 

Prairie Spirit School Division continually assesses the risk for workplace violence and is responsible for the development of student plans to reduce, or minimize, the potential for violence, including appropriate specialized assessments, Individual Education Plans (IEP) or Individual Behaviour Plans (IBP), and Safety Plans. The Division shall ensure that assigned workers are comprehensively trained on these plans and provided with appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) tailored to the unique risks identified for each student.

Workers are responsible to implement and adhere to all recommendations, strategies, and interventions specified within a student’s documented plans. 

In order to ensure clarity and appropriate response, work refusals will be categorized into two distinct types: immediate dangerous situations and ongoing student-related concerns. 

This distinction recognizes that while both scenarios may pose risks, the nature of the response, investigation, and required support differ significantly. Immediate dangers require urgent intervention to eliminate physical hazards, whereas student-related situations often involve complex behavioral dynamics that necessitate a coordinated, supportive approach involving planning, training, and clinical input.

• Category A – Immediate Danger:
  Situations posing an imminent threat to physical safety due to structural or factors in the environment. (e.g., exposed wiring, chemical spill, asbestos exposure or a violent incident in progress).

• Category B – Ongoing Student-Related Risk:
  Situations involving repeated or escalating student behavior that may not be immediately dangerous but pose a sustained risk to a worker’s physical and/or psychological safety and health.

Proper investigation and documentation of work refusals are crucial to resolving the refusal and correcting any circumstances that led to the refusal. When a right to refuse has been reported, the supervisor will ask for the refusal in writing and then inform the Workplace Health and Safety committee who will move forward with an investigation and subsequent Work Refusal Report. The report will identify sufficient steps and recommendations necessary to satisfy the worker that the condition of work is safe and healthy. 

The Prairie Spirit School Division Workplace Health and Safety Committee shall consist of the following members:

• Divisional Health and Safety Representative

• Local Health and Safety Representative or alternate 

• Human Resource Manager 

Once a refusal is received, the committee will meet to discuss which Category (A or B) the refusal falls under and initiate a formal investigation procedure. 

To Report Serious Incidents, Call the WSH Division at 1-855-957-7233