Ontario. Industrial Health and Safety Branch

• Industrial Health and Safety Branch

This branch was formed under the jurisdiction of the Occupational Health and Safety Division in August 1978 when the Occupational Safety Branch was divided into the Construction Health and Safety Branch and the Industrial Health and Safety Branch. From 1964 to 1976, a similar branch had existed called the Industrial Safety Branch.

In 1991-1992 it was renamed the Industrial Health and Safety Program within the newly established Operations Division, Occupational Health and Safety Branch

The Industrial Health and Safety Branch, established under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, administered programs designed to reduce the incidence of illness and injury to workers in industry (except construction and mining, which were handled by the Construction Health and Safety Branch).

The branch encouraged employers and employees to assume primary responsibility for occupational health and safety programs, assisted them in establishing internal responsibility and consulted with them to recognize, evaluate and control potential problems and to establish ongoing workplace safety programs.

Industrial Health and Safety Officers operating out of the Ministry District Offices inspected industrial and logging workplaces, investigated refusals to work due to unsafe conditions, and investigated serious accidents and jobsite deaths. Regional engineers working for the branch had responsibility to review plans for new buildings and alterations to existing ones for potential occuaptional health and safety hazards.

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

KWIC Index to Government Services 1982; RG 7 inventory

Archivist(s):
John Dirks