The Importance Of Workplace Safety

With the 2014 introduction of The Saskatchewan Employment Act, and the repeal of The Occupational Health and Safety Act, fines for workplace fatalities in Saskatchewan rose to a maximum of $1.5 million for a corporation, and up to $500,000 for an individual. This follows a trend across the country that has seen an increase in the maximum possible fines for workplace injuries over the past number of years. And courts are imposing significant fines: in January 2018, a Saskatchewan corporate employer was fined a total of $420,000 for a workplace fatality that occurred three years prior.

In all provinces and territories, employers can face charges and resulting fines for workplace near-misses arising from unsafe behaviours, injuries, and fatalities. Regardless of jurisdiction, employers are generally obligated to ensure, insofar as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all of the employer's workers. This includes properly