As an employer, it is your responsibility to have safe work practices at the workplace. Enough efforts should be put in to avoid an accident, for both the employers and the employees alike. This will not only create a safe working environment but will also save you money. However, there is always a chance of things going wrong once in a while. Once an accident happens, you are obligated to have certain responsibilities towards your employee.
Get Medical Help
As an employer, one of the first things you should do is seek immediate medical help. This should be your first step as this will ensure your employees’ safety. If the injury is life-threatening, get in touch with the nearest hospital and call emergency services. It is not immediately clear if an ambulance is required, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. If you fail to get your employee medical assistance, then you can be sued in the court of law. Even if the injury is minor, your job is to encourage your employee to get medical care from an approved provider at the earliest.
Understand your Obligations as an Employer
In case you are unfamiliar with your obligations as an employer towards the employee who was hurt, then it’s better to brush up your basics. This is very critical information and you should always be equipped with this knowledge as accidents can happen anytime on the job. You can always get in touch with, and consult the Workers’ Compensation Board of your province to understand what is expected of you in the event of a work accident.
In Alberta, employer responsibilities for work-related accidents and illnesses include the following:
- As an employer, you are expected to report work-related injuries within a period of 72 hours of being notified of the injury. Failing to do so, you are liable for a fine. You are expected to submit an Employer Report of Injury or Occupational Disease to WCB-Alberta.
- In the case of any fatalities, you are expected to report them immediately.
- You are expected to pay the worker/employee a regular salary for the day on which the injury occurred. In the case of disablement going beyond the date of injury, the compensation payments will start at the first regular working day afterward. The compensation payments have to be issued every two weeks.
- You will be expected to work with WCB-Alberta, along with health care providers, to ensure that a safe, effective return-to-work plan has been devised for the injured worker.
- WCB-Alberta has to be notified within a period of 24 hours after a worker’s return to work.
- The workers’ progress has to be monitored during the treatment as well as during their return to work.
- Ensure that all records related to the first aid treatment that was administered to the worker are kept and maintained. You are supposed to provide the worker with a copy of this record.
- The cost of immediate transportation along with the medical treatment facility will have to be paid by the employer. You are expected to ensure that an adequate means of transfer is available at all times.
Gather the Facts
In order to ensure that no dispute arises in the future, keep a record. What’s even more essential is that you gather the facts in the right manner. Interview witnesses and take photographs of the place where the incident happened. Also, make sure that you review the video footage if the place was under CCTV surveillance.
Incidents don’t wait to happen and you should be prepared for such scenarios. In case you have any questions regarding the ethics and laws regulating workplace safety in Canada, you can always consult Prowse Barrette (Previously Prowse Chowne).