Roughly 100 provincial offences officers expected to visit about 1,500 workplaces
Only 15 per cent of Ontario businesses inspected last week for COVID safety were flagged for followup visits, according to the provincial government, and just nine tickets were issued.
Officers made 718 visits to workplaces during the first week of the campaign, checking that: employers screen employees and visitors; workers maintain physical distance and are masked, where needed; and businesses have safety plans, among other measures.
The ministry’s analysis of followup inspections found a 70 per cent improvement in health and safety compliance compared to the first inspection.
Also in March, the province announced it is providing guidance to employees who wanted to self-swab for a rapid antigen point-of-care test on a voluntary basis.
New round of inspections
Ontario launched another round of workplace inspections in COVID-19 hotspot locations in the province. Roughly 100 provincial offences officers are visiting about 1,500 workplaces in Toronto, Hamilton and regions of Durham, Halton, Peel and York over two weeks.
“While case counts continue to drop, we can’t take anything for granted when it comes to protecting everyday workers with more contagious variants of COVID-19 entering our country every day,” says Monte McNaughton, minister of labour, training and skills development.
“We’ve inspected these workplaces regularly throughout the pandemic, but it is important business owners and supervisors continue following health and safety best practices that have helped us get this far… these inspections are a critical tool as we support businesses and employees through this time.”
Officers are also offering information on workplace rapid antigen screening supports available for businesses, as well as job-protected Infectious Disease Emergency Leave and paid sick days through the Ontario COVID-19 Worker Income Protection Benefit.
Last month, Ontario carried out targeted provincewide inspections of construction sites.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, provincial offences officers and occupational health and safety inspectors have done more than 75,000 COVID-19-related inspections and investigations. They have issued over 630 tickets and stopped unsafe work related to COVID-19 93 times during that period.
Manufacturing and food processing workplaces, warehouses and distribution sectors make up 50 per cent of COVID-19 cases reported in Ontario workplaces.
