Injury Prevention and Workers Compensation

Question 1

What is the federal jurisdiction?

Answer 1

crosses provincial border, federal public servant, interprovincial transport, banking, telecomm, First Nations
10% of workforce

Question 2

What is the provincial jursdiction?

Answer 2

provincial public servant
any job based in one province

Question 3

What is a flag of convenience?

Answer 3

when a company is in one place but they register in a different place with less labour laws

Question 4

What is an Act?

Answer 4

Legislation or law passed by the legislature setting out a broad framework
ex: workplace health and safety act

Question 5

What is a regulation?

Answer 5

Rules developed by the government setting out how the broad framework operates in specific circumstances
Ex: Manitoba workplace safety and health act and regulation book
Can be changed easier without having legislation approved

Question 6

What is a guideline?

Answer 6

specific rules about conduct around the law, usually directed at government actors
ex: when inspector can go into workplace and gives guidelines of what to examine
ex: Workplace health and safety board for the workplace health and safety act

Question 7

What is the reasonability principle?

Answer 7

employers have obligation to provide reasonably safe workplace
Use the due diligence test

Question 8

What is defined as a reasonably safe workplace?

Answer 8

employer must be aware of risks, communicate them to the workforce and cannot plead ignorance
Expected to take steps to prevent injuries
Employer is responsible for any issue

Question 9

What is the issue with employers being responsible for workers’ injuries

Answer 9

Paternalistic: means employers are in charge and have power over workers
trade off is the worker cannot be responsible for incidents

Question 10

What is the due diligence test?

Answer 10

1. Forseeability
2. Preventability
3. Control

Question 11

What is the issue with the due diligence test?

Answer 11

prevents injuries and death
gives employers defense against responsibility if they can prove they’ve done their due diligence

Question 12

What is the internal responsibility system?

Answer 12

Right to know, right to participate, right to refuse unsafe work
firm governing through JHSC, most effective in unionized workplaces

Question 13

Who is in charge of inspections and enforcement ?

Answer 13

The role of ministries of labour (or jurisdictional equivalent)

Question 14

What do the ministries of labour do?

Answer 14

address complaints and launch inspections
Issues fines, orders, and prosecutions

Question 15

What is a proactive approach?

Answer 15

addresses issues, prevents issues, worthwhile but underfunded

Question 16

What is a reactive approach?

Answer 16

responding to injuries and complaints, majority of the inspections, more urgent and takes priority

Question 17

What are orders and fines from the ministries of labour?

Answer 17

stop work orders, fines if orders are not followed to deter (from $1-5,000 depending on infraction and record)

Question 18

What do ministries of labour prosecute for?

Answer 18

serious infractions (serious injury, death), not criminal (unless serious case due to negligence but jail time never really happens), fines of $5,000-50,000 (never issued), very rare to prosecute

Question 19

What is workers compensation?

Answer 19

wage-loss benefits (max 90%), eased access to medical treatment and rehabilitation, ended workers right to sue, Meredith Principles

Question 20

What happened before workers compensation?

Answer 20

assumption risk is priced into pay, common law protection: injured worker had to sue (very hard)

Question 21

What are the Meredith Principles?

Answer 21

No fault insurance with accident fund paid by premiums
WCB is independent and sole provider of insurance (ensures identical rates)

Question 22

How are employers premiums set?

Answer 22

per industry and dependent on employers history

Question 23

What is the arises and occurs test?

Answer 23

did it happen at work or due to work
injuries are hard to prove if psychosocial

Question 24

What is the balance of probabilities test?

Answer 24

51% certainty it happened at work, if terminate due to injury employer is fined, employer must prove firing is not related to the injury

Question 25

What is the adjudicated system?

Answer 25

workers and employers have disagreements of injuries, both can appeal the decision

Question 26

What is the re-employment obligation?

Answer 26

obligated to rehire in same or comparable position are injury or face a penalty, must be employed a year before its in effect, rehiring must last 6 months or two years from date of injury (whichever is shorter)

Question 27

What are the limits of workers compensation?

Answer 27

inadequate wage-loss benefits, surveilling workers, large numbers of claims are rejected, experience-rating reduces cost of claims but leads to suppression

Question 28

What would make inspections and enforcement more effective?

Answer 28

funding, more proactive, transparency in reports, worker involvement in inspection, increasing fines