Modern Health & Safety Consulting Inc.

Did you know that Alberta Association for Safety Partnerships (AASP) offers companies various COR Maintenance Audit options? One of those options is a Corrective Action Report or CAR. ⁣
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The CAR option allows an employer to complete an assessment of their health and safety management system using the documentation and observation questions from the AASP audit tool without having to conduct any interviews. The audit is scored solely on documentation review and observations.⁣
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AASP provides an approved CAR that must be completed by an AASP certified external auditor who works directly with management. Together, management and the auditor develop a detailed plan for corrective actions and identified improvements to the health and safety management system. The CAR must be signed by the most senior management representative for the work site.⁣
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The criteria for a company to use the CAR option are as follows:⁣
1. Must have completed at least one full 3-year COR cycle.⁣
2. Must achieve a 90% or greater on their most recent recertification/renewal audit.⁣
3. The employer must notify the AASP within the first 6 months (by June 30) of the first maintenance calendar year of their intention to participate in the CAR option.⁣
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Please note, AASP must pre-approve the use of the CAR option prior to an employer beginning the process. ⁣
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Ever wonder how long a COR audit takes to complete from start to finish? ⁣
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As per Partnership’s Standard, an auditor has a total of 45 days from the day they hold the pre-audit meeting or begin reviewing documentation, whichever is first, to complete all evidence gathering activities - documentation review, interviews and observation tours. ⁣
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After all evidence gathering activities are completed, the auditor then has a total of of 21 days from the last day on site to complete and submit the audit report to a Certifying Partner for quality assurance (QA) review. ⁣
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The Certifying Partner can take anywhere from a couple of weeks up to a month depending on the time of the year to complete their QA review and then return the audit report to the auditor. If corrections are required, the auditor has an additional 15 calendar days to make the corrections and resubmit the audit for additional QA review on the required corrections only. This is allowed to happen twice. ⁣
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Additional factors that determine how long an audit takes include the size of the company and scope of the audit. Larger, more complex companies with multiple sites usually require an auditor to need all 45 days on site while smaller companies can be completed in less time. In total, an audit can take upwards of 3 to 4 months from the start date before the employer receives their copy of the final COR audit report.⁣
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The interview portion of a COR audit tends to be one of the more stressful activities for employers and employees. Rest assured, it’s not a test and there are no right or wrong answers! ⁣
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Employee interviews are usually around 30 minutes in length while management interviews are around 45 minutes. A series of questions are asked to help the auditor determine how well the health and safety management system has been implemented against documentation review. In other words, are your employees aware of your written health and safety requirements?⁣
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All interviews are strictly confidential. No personal information or identifiers are used. All responses are collectively recorded and then bulk answers are provided to protect the anonymity of employees. ⁣
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Hopefully that helps shed a little light on what to expect during the interview process of your COR audit. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. ⁣
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A Certificate of Recognition (COR) or a Small Employer COR (SECOR) is awarded to employers who have successfully developed and implemented a health and safety management system that meets provincial/federal standards. There are two types of certifications - COR (Certificate of Recognition) or SECOR (Small Employer Certificate of Recognition).⁣
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A 𝗖𝗢𝗥 is for employers with 11 or more employees. To obtain a COR, you must have in place and implemented an effective health and safety management system then have an external, certified auditor such as myself conduct an audit where you archive a passing score of 80% overall and a minimum of 50% in each of the 10 elements. Certified external auditors use an approved audit protocol from a certifying partner.⁣
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A 𝗦𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥 is for employers that have 10 or fewer employees. This program is specifically designed to meet the needs of smaller employers. To obtain a SECOR, either yourself or an external auditor submits information and health and safety management system documents to a certifying partner for review. The SECOR program requires a representative of the company to complete a two-day training course, which is offered online or in class. The scoring requirements are the same as the COR audit.⁣
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The COR/SECOR certifies that the employer’s health and safety management system has been evaluated by a certified auditor and met the requirements as per provincial/federal standards. Certificates are issued by Alberta Labour and are co-signed by a Certifying Partner. Achieving and maintaining a valid COR is required for earning a financial incentive through the WCB Partnerships in Injury Reduction program.⁣
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This month, over 10,500 Certificate of Recognition (COR) holders in Alberta received a rebate as part of the Partnerships in Injury Reduction (PIR) program, sharing approximately $84.9 million.⁣
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With a focus on injury prevention, the PIR program can help you raise the bar for safety in your workplace while reducing your WCB premiums. PIR employers earn an average rebate of 12.4% of their premiums. ⁣
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The program is designed to help you lower your premiums by encouraging injury prevention and the development of effective workplace health, safety and return-to-work plans. Specifically, it can help you: ⁣
* Decrease your workers' time away from work.⁣
* Reduce the number of workplace injuries.⁣
* Reduce costs associated with claims.⁣
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Interested in learning more about the PIR program and how you can earn annual rebates from WCB? Need support with your health and safety management system or an external auditor for your COR audit? Contact me today and let me navigate the complexities of all your various health and safety needs allowing you to focus on running your business. ⁣
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Source: WCB-Alberta Worksight ⁣
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Did you know that certified external auditors are bound by a Code of Ethics? Auditors have access to confidential company information as well as information about its employees and they are obligated to keep this information confidential. Breaking confidentiality can have severe repercussions in relation to the effectiveness of the audit and to an auditors reputation. Sadly, I have seen situations occur and know how devastating this can be for both employers and auditors. The code of ethics covers the following topics:⁣
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𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮⁣
𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙩⁣
𝘿𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚⁣
𝘼𝙘𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙮 ⁣
𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨⁣
𝘾𝙡𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮⁣
𝙃𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙮⁣
𝙊𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙮⁣
𝙍𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚⁣
𝙏𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨⁣
𝘾𝙤𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙊𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙮⁣
𝘿𝙪𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙍𝙚𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩⁣
𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙨 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙨 ⁣
𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙇𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙨𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣⁣
𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚 ⁣
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I pride myself on my clients knowing their confidential company information is safe with me. I have strict, security measures in place to ensure all your private data remains private. In additional to security measures, I also take the code of ethics very seriously and ensure all my clients receive timely, accurate, detailed audit reports explaining the companies strengths so they know what they are doing well and can maintain those areas as well as identifying suggestions for improvement so that they are aware of any areas of weakness that would benefit from improvement. I also ensure all my clients receive an action plan based off of your audit results and recommendations to take the guess work out of “what next” after your audit.⁣
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COR Audits are not all created equally! While most result in certification and certain financial rewards, they are differences in the various types. Let me break them down for you so you know what type of audit you’re looking at having completed.⁣
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Baseline Audit⁣
Is an informal audit that compares your Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) against a Certifying Partners (CP) Audit Instrument. It’s intended as a preliminary review of your HSMS against COR audit requirements. This type of audit is generally for companies that have not previously held a COR or new companies that are wanting to know if they are complaint and in a position to pass a COR audit. A baseline audit is not submitted to the CP for review and does not result in a COR being issued to the company.⁣
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COR Certification Audit⁣
Is a formal health and safety audit conducted by an external certified auditor (like me) for an employer wishing to achieve or maintain a COR and in turn potential WCB rebates. An approved audit protocol is used and then submitted to a CP for quality assurance (QA) review. In order to achieve a COR, the overall audit score must meet a minimum of 80% with no less then 50% scored in each element.⁣
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COR Maintenance Audit⁣
Is also a formal health and safety audit however, it can be conducted by either an internal auditor (employee) or external auditor (me). The purpose of a COR maintenance audit is to allow employers to maintain their COR certifications in years two and three of the COR audit cycle. To maintain a COR, the overall score of a maintenance audit must meet a minimum of 60%.⁣
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Limited Scope Audit⁣
Occurs when an external auditor completes a COR Certification or maintenance audit and it falls short of meeting scoring requirements. This can occur if the overall audit scored between 70%-79% and/or when an individual element scores less than 50%. If this happens, the auditor notifies the CP who in turn will contact the employer to determine if a limited scope audit is an option. If both the CP and employer agree, the employer has a limited about of time to correct deficiencies identified and then have the auditor return to re-audit the specific areas involved.

There is often a lot of confusion around the terms, employee and worker. Most people believe they mean the same thing and more often than not, they are used interchangeably but they actually have very different meanings especially when it comes to health and safety!⁣
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An 𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙮𝙚𝙚 is someone that is employed by a company. It’s not role specific and includes all levels within an organization.⁣
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𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧𝙨 on the other hand, are just that - workers, while supervisors are supervisors, managers are managers and senior managers are senior managers - in other words role specific. ⁣
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So why does this matter? When it comes to health and safety legislation and regulatory compliance, it is crucial to ensure you understand the difference and ensure you are using the correct term in your health and safety management system, especially your policies, practices and procedures. Roles such as managers, supervisors and workers have specific health and safety responsibilities and requirements that would not necessarily apply to all employees.⁣
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A Certificate of Recognition (COR) can be issued for a period of 3 years, 1 year or 6 months based on the following criteria:⁣
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* A 3 year COR is granted when the Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) has been in place and functioning for a period of at least 1 year or more. There must be a minimum of one-years worth of historical data (pervious 12 months) to achieve a 3 year COR.⁣
* A 1 year COR is granted when the HSMS has been in place and functioning for a period of less than 1 year, with a minimum of 3 months documentation (records).⁣
* A 6 month COR is based off of documentation review only and is granted if the company has an existing COR, but no active worksites in Alberta. ⁣
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A HSMS consists of both directive documents (e.g. polices, procedures, processes) and records (e.g. employee training records, inspection records, meeting minutes, preventative maintenance records, emergency response drills, incident investigations etc.). ⁣
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Once a 3 year COR has been achieved, it remains valid as long as annual maintenance requirements are met. Maintenance audits must achieve a minimum of overall score of 60%. Maintenance audits are required in years two and three of the audit cycle. After the three year cycle, the COR expires and another external audit is required to renew your certificate. ⁣
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Feel free to contact me to discuss where your HSMS is currently at and what options are available to achieve your safety goals.⁣
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Unfortunately health and safety documentation is not all the same and it’s important to understand the difference between the various types to ensure you’re meeting all Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) requirements. Let’s breakdown the differences between the three most commonly confused types: policies, procedures, and practices.⁣
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Policies - are written statements that express a companies (and sometimes specifically senior leaderships) wisdom, philosophy, experiences, and beliefs as they relate to future attainment or maintenance of goals. ⁣
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Procedures - are a series of written steps/actions that are to be preformed in a chronological order from start to finish.⁣
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Practices - are written guidelines outlining how to perform a task with minimum risk to people, equipment, materials and environment. ⁣
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Hopefully this helps clarify the three most commonly confused health and safety document types! If you’re still unsure about having the necessary documentation in place for regulatory compliance or your upcoming COR audit, I also conduct gap assessments on client programs so they know of any areas they may not be complaint in. Let me support your health and safety goals while navigating the complexities of regulatory compliance ensuring your setup for success.⁣
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While the components of a health and safety management system (HSMS) vary from organization to organization based on the nature and scope of business, to be effective, the following topics are considered essential as well as required if you are wanting to achieve or maintain your certificate of recognition (COR):⁣
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* Leadership and Management Commitment⁣
* Hazard Identification and Assessment⁣
* Hazard Control⁣
* Health & Safety Committee/Representative⁣
* Qualifications, Orientations and Training⁣
* Other Parties at/in the vicinity of the Work Site⁣
* Inspections⁣
* Emergency Response⁣
* Incident Reporting and Investigation⁣
* System Administration⁣
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Once you have developed and implemented a HSMS, it then can be audited by an External Certified Auditor such as myself. Audits are coordinated through a Certifying Partner. Once the audit has been completed, it is then reviewed by the Certifying Partner for compliance with quality standards. Once all requirements have been met, a COR will be issued by the Certifying Partner in conjunction with Partnerships.⁣
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Did you know - Employers with 20 or more regularly employed workers must by law, have a health and safety management system or program in place and documented. For employers with multiple work sites, the total number of workers at all work sites counts towards the 20 workers. ⁣
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Employers with 19 or less regularly employed workers are not required to have a program, but must have documentation in place that meets the requirements established by Occupational Heath and Safety (OHS) legislation. This includes topics such as but not limited to leadership commitment and management, identification, assessment and control of hazards, emergency response planning and incident reporting and investigation. ⁣
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Whether your business is just you, a few employees or thousands of employees, you’re legally required to have some level of Health and Safety Management System in place. I provide cost-effective, custom programs specific to your industry and scope of work that will meet both legislative (provincial/federal) and industry requirements. Already have a program in place but missing certain requirements? I also offer individual programs, policies, codes of practice, exposure control plans, safe work/operating procedures etc. as well as forms and templates to meet your business needs and ensure the health and safety of your employees.⁣
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